Walking the Tightrope
by Asuka Kureru
Summary: (COMPLETE)(1x2x5, sequel to Equilibrium) The boys are now together. Doesn't mean Heero'n'Wufei are cool about each other yet.
1. Chapter One

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Walking the Tightrope – Chapter 01

Author: Asuka Kureru (asukasama@ifrance.com**)**

Homepage: http://www.chez.com/oniryu/asuka/index.html

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Series: Gundam Wing 

Warnings: Yaoi, romance, sap, love triangle, threesome, heavy lime to nearly full lemon, dunno yet; the POV is shifting between the boys. 

Couple (trio?) : 1+**2**+**5, 1**x**2**x**5**x**2**x**1 and diverse combinations ^__^ **

Disclaimer: They're sharing, why can't we do the same? ;_;

In French, "a tightrope walker" is said "un équilibriste"… someone who is able to reach and keep their equilibrium long and steadily enough to walk and dance and even play, up on a string, narrow, fragile, many feet away from the ground. I just thought that it was a nice metaphor ^__^

By the way, this begins the morning after Equilibrium. Read it again or you'll be confused, folks. 

http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=855259

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+ -- change of point of view or short break

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ **-- long break, scene change **

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was the first time in his life that Wufei felt so good when waking up. The mattress could be much too soft by place and harder and strangely bumpy in others, yet he was still warm and comfortable, and had never felt more… cuddled, cradled, more surrounded than he was feeling just now. He never wanted to get up, never wanted to leave the cocoon.

It was a nice feeling, as if he was accepted, protected, loved… but his clan was dead and his wife had been dead even longer. Even if they hadn't been, he had never officially shared a bed with Meiran, they had been supposed to be too young, and his clan had never been big on physical displays of affection. He didn't have anyone anymore, no one to make him feel safe like this, safe and cherished. It was a nice feeling, but it wouldn't last. It never lasted.

Someone was looking at him. Instinct won, and he woke up, opening his eyes and readying himself to jump on the observer, faintly regretting the dream, but still, forgetting it already.

There was a pair of beautiful, intense, fiery, positively gleaming eyes, just looking into his own eyes. A totally striking melt of soft baby blue and purple-violet narrow specks and strings. A darker violet ring around the irises made the inside of the eyes stand out even more between it and the little black dots in the middle. He had always believed those eyes to be somewhat mauve, the color of a summer sky just before night begins to fall, but in fact, they weren't even that already unique color. You could see it, once you were near enough. They only seemed so because, on the pure sky blue bottom of the irises, were running intense purple lines and little spots, and at some distance they seemed to just melt. But once close, well, it was easy to see all the hues, the unique appearance… 

The eyes kind of screwed up, as if they were smiling at him….

They were smiling at him. DUO was smiling at him.

Duo was sprawled on Wufei's belly, one arm on his chest, his disheveled braid tumbling down his shoulder to fall on the Chinese teen's throat and slide around his neck, following the junction between his neck and shoulders. And he was smiling at him, warmly, affectionately, intimately, wonderfully happy. The way Wufei had always imagined he would look at Heero when they were alone. Gods, this must be a dream. This MUST be. Duo was his best friend, Wufei would have slept on the floor anywhere they were to go on a mission if it meant risking sleeping in the same bed as him, embarrassing himself by reacting the way he secretly dreamed of and losing Duo's friendship… Duo was in love with Heero, and Heero…

…Was blinking sleepily at them from Duo's other side, buried under the cover that Duo had pushed back on him when he had crawled on Wufei.

Oh. 

He didn't have time to wonder about the sort of dream this could be before Duo, without any warning, decided to perform an oral tonsillectomy on him. 

Definitely not a dream. Too nice to be a dream. Too real to be a dream. 

And he had certainly never dreamed about Heero being there in all the times he had imagined being with Duo. Not this way at least, usually in the official-boyfriend-kicking-the-shit-out-of-the-stealing-bastard-and-leaving-with-a-mocking-Duo-who-had-never-really-liked-him-anyway kind of dream. But simply looking at them as they were getting cuddly… no way, too messed up. 

Duo released him and chuckled, grinning at Heero, who smirked slightly at them both, straightening up and putting his cheek on his fist to better look at the scene. 

Before Wufei could understand what he was doing, Duo left him to jump on Heero with a war cry a Sioux wouldn't have despised, and crushed him in the mattress, plastering his lips against the Japanese boy's. Wufei blinked. Two seconds after, the braided tornado was crawling all over him again, to fall off the edge of the bed with a dull "thud". Before any of the Asian boys could worry, he had jumped on his feet and was running in the corridor, howling "BANZAIIII!!!" all over the place. 

Heero and Wufei sweatdropped. 

+

Heero glanced at Wufei and stifled his sigh. Damn, it was so awkward being in bed with him. They had never been close, too occupied by their little competition to really take the time to fraternize… even if he had taken great pleasure in messing with Wufei's mind, by acting like if he didn't even notice that Wufei's skills and his were even close and that Wufei was working hard to surpass him. They were rivals….

… and now they were in the same bed, glancing at each other over the dip in the mattress that marked the place the boy they both loved had occupied not two minutes ago. 

The light of the early morning softened Wufei's features, made his nose and eyebrows less sharp, changed his black eyes from fiery depths swirling with unseen forces, to soft, tender darkness. 

He didn't want to see Chang's soft side. It made what had happened the night before between them too alien and yet too real. 

Heero let himself fall back on the mattress, one arm across his face, hoping Chang would think that he was only shielding his eyes from the light. He was trying to shield his mind from finally understanding the hugeness of what he had done. 

Oh gods. It was too much of a responsibility.

The theory was good, that said that he could do anything as long as he kept Duo and Duo was happy, even share him with his rival, that as long as they tried to act maturely and be reasonable it would be ok, but how the hell would they make it work in real life? Heero took smug pleasure in making Wufei feel inferior and inadequate, which in theory was good because it made his teammate push himself harder, but was bad in terms of getting on with him. Wufei took great pleasure in giving a friendly ear to Duo when Duo needed to complain about him, not making any remarks out loud to Heero, but totally NOT hiding the fact that he knew as well as he himself how things were between him and his boyfriend. 

It had been easy to share ideals with him while it had still been night, but the light of the day made them… real, somehow. Changed them from ideas to realities they now had to live with. 

And he was steadily finding more and more annoying little details. Nothing precise yet, just… feelings. Somewhat uneasy feelings. Decidedly unpleasant. He hoped he hadn't completely destroyed their relationship, the three of them. If it didn't work… Wufei would find himself friendless. Heero would be all alone. And Duo doubly so, losing a lover and a best friend in the process.

He couldn't tolerate hurting Duo like that. He WOULD make it work. He would. 

Follow your feelings… yeah right. What feeling to follow? He only felt like doing two things: to love Duo, and to hide from Wufei in shame. Not really compatible… ah, hell. 

Grunting, he sat up, glancing at Wufei from behind his lashes. The Chinese boy had been looking at him, but he turned his eyes away as soon as he saw Heero move. Damn. The black-haired boy was feeling as awkward as he did, realized Heero. Did he have second thoughts too? Shit. How to relax the atmosphere between them? 

"Do you think it's that intelligent to let Duo alone in the kitchen?" he asked in an idle voice, trying hard to sound casual. 

He winced inwardly at the little note of tenseness that was too audible to let Wufei believe his tone. Great, he couldn't even make small talk with the guy. 

"Probably not," answered Wufei, sitting at the edge of the bed, flashing a little smirk at him. 

Heero wondered if he truly had heard the relief in Wufei's voice… Probably, given the situation. 

Damn it all to Hell. He couldn't seem to do anything right, not even be relaxed in front of his Duo's Other. Why couldn't he have Duo's easy way of communicating? Why did he have to feel awkward and out of place each time he tried to chat with someone that was not his lover? Damn Doctor J! 

Duo knew him, knew his shortcomings, his little quirks, his bizarre hang-ups. Duo never thought him strange, never thought anything of it, understood why it wasn't his fault and why it didn't matter, because he could read him and know what it was that he meant, that he felt, under the cold, nearly robotic behavior. And the other people, well, he didn't care what they thought of him, and if his behavior didn't please them they could go fuck themselves. 

But Wufei… He was a teammate, so Heero had always cared what he thought of him on a professional level. But Duo cared about what Wufei thought on an emotional level, and he cared about Duo's feelings, so he cared about what Wufei felt too. And it meant being embarrassed like he never had been when he thought about all the little things which marked him as strange, outlandish, which always made him an outsider. 

He supposed that even his way of approaching the problem had been strange… Wufei had even told him so. And Wufei, while not as weirdly socialized as he was, was still as extremely aloof and logical as it was possible while growing up as a member of a real family, even as dysfunctional as it could be. If even _he_ thought that Heero pushed the logic too far…

No, it was a good solution. Wufei had accepted it, Duo had accepted it. It was just that most people were too entangled in silly notions of possessiveness toward the object of their love… which Heero found stupid. Wasn't love supposed to be selfless? It was what was written in the dictionaries… 

It would work. 

Heero was startled out of his daze by the sound of the Chinese boy pushing the door to get out. Fortunately, he had regained his composure by the time the other teen turned around to glance at him quizzically, visibly wondering why he didn't follow. 

Heero jumped out of the bed and followed, his face as expressionless as always, totally hiding his internal turmoil. He would make it work. They just had to ignore the awkwardness, it would go away after a while. It would. 

It had to. 

+

Wufei glanced at his teammate's face and bit back a sigh. Heero had let the Iceman's facade fall back over him… A sure sign that he was thinking hard about something and that he didn't want to give away any clues as to what it was or how he felt about it. 

Wufei was unnerved. There was an imaginary itch on his left shoulder, where the other boy's stare was probably fixated, and he had trouble keeping himself from jumping at each creaking from the old house's floor. It was hard not to run, to get to Duo the fastest he could, so the longhaired boy could erase the strangeness between them with just a smile and a joke. 

It was hard to believe the memories he had from the night before, before Duo had come back. Of Heero leaning over him, smiling at him, so startling, so stunningly beautiful… of their caresses… 

He felt the tip of his ears turn pink. What had they done? He couldn't believe his memories, he just couldn't. The passion in the normally ice-cold soldier, the delightful mix of strength and control eliciting such a fiery response from him… the playful side, the softer side, of the boy who had self destructed without a sound rather than bending to OZ's will… 

Gods, he had made out with Duo's boyfriend. He was still alive too. 

…. He WAS Duo's boyfriend, too… now that he thought of it. 

"Hey!" exclaimed Heero when his shoulder bumped into Wufei's. The Chinese boy had faltered in his steps and nearly stopped for a second. 

"Sorry, just thinking," he managed to say to Heero who was looking at him, seeming slightly curious. 

Heero's eyes briefly shone with good humor, and Wufei glared at him, considering sticking his tongue out at the other teen. 

"Whatever you are thinking, Yuy, don't even think about saying it," he mock-growled. 

The other boy snorted, and considered him, as if he was gauging the raven-haired boy to see if he had something to fear if he didn't comply… and as if he was finding that possibility dubious… but finally he nodded, the corner of his lips only so slightly quirked upwards in the beginning of a smirk. 

They stepped inside of the kitchen. 

+

Duo was waiting for them, standing by the table. They stopped by reflex; he was looking at the two of them so strangely… glancing at Heero, then at Wufei, then back at Heero, and nibbling on his lips, looking pensive…

Finally the Chinese boy had enough and asked him: "What is it?"

Duo shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal and gave an awkward little grin.

"Oh, I just don't know which one of you to kiss good morning first, that's all…" he said with an impish smile. 

Heero blinked, Wufei flushed. Kiss him good morning? It was so… 

It was something that boyfriends and lovers did. 

And like every time he had thought of that since he woke up, Wufei was thrown for a loop. 

Heero considered his lover, pensive. Duo was primarily joking with them to dissipate the tenseness between the two Asian boys, true, but Heero could see the nervousness underneath… In his own way, he was asking for the rules. Was there to be any sort of hierarchy with the order in which they were kissed? Would Heero feel jealous if he kissed Wufei first? Would Wufei feel abandoned if it was the contrary?

The Japanese shrugged.

"Kiss Wufei. I've had my share, I can wait a little longer," he added, sitting at his place at the table and grabbing his cup of coffee. 

Wufei felt silly. He had somewhat thought that as the… as Duo's senior boyfriend, well, he should have gone first. If there was something Wufei didn't want, it was to make him jealous. Heero shared remarkably easily, especially considering his background, void of any sort of love, but that didn't mean he couldn't feel lonely and abandoned. And when… IF he decided he had enough of this strange arrangement, there was no doubt in Wufei's mind that Duo would choose him, even if he loved Wufei too. They had been together way longer, when he had only been Duo's friend. It would be less trying to go back to the ancient relationship.

Then, Duo approached him, silent on his bare feet, and put a finger under his chin to make him look at him in the face. Wufei started, he had been totally lost in thoughts and hadn't seen him come any nearer. 

And as for being near, they were near. Nose to nose, almost. 

Duo grinned at him, then slid a hand under his ponytail and pressed his lips against his. Instead of taking full advantage of the warmth and suppleness of his lips, Wufei couldn't help but glance over the boy's shoulder to verify if Heero was looking. He wasn't, thank God. Wufei kissed back.

Duo let him go with a radiant smile and danced to Heero's chair, draping himself on the boy's shoulders. 

"You've been patient, good boy," he joked while nuzzling the ear poking out of the boy's tousled bangs. 

Heero bent his head and bit Duo's arm.

"Ouch! You beast!" protested the violet-eyed boy. 

Heero caught his braid in his hand and used it to force him to come on his side and bend toward him, till he was at a good distance to kiss. And kiss him he did. 

"Mmm… ravaged by early morning already, the day's gonna be good!" commented Duo, licking approvingly his lips. 

"Sit down and eat," answered Heero, smacking his butt. 

"Yes dear," Duo answered, overly meek. 

"You'll have to be firm with him, Wufei, I don't want him to come to you when I refuse him something… If you give him an inch, he'll take your whole arm. Pets like that don't let pass the slightest opportunity to forget the rules."

Wufei blinked and stared at the Japanese boy, who, sitting calmly, was eating without a care, as if what he had said was totally normal. 

"Sorry, master, I'll be a good pet, I swear," Duo said, head modestly lowered, but his eyes gleamed amusedly under his bangs when he glanced at Wufei. Well, if they joked like that between them, he should play along when he was invited to, shouldn't he?

"Don't worry, I'll be firm," Wufei answered in what he hoped was a very stern voice.

"Oh, rats, two overly dominating males for one little me…"

"You're being insolent, pet," Wufei shot back, lightly smacking his arm. He couldn't help but wonder if he was stepping over a line he didn't know was there, but Duo only looked overly sheepish. He was still playing along. 

"I beg you pardon, O Great Master Wu."

Wufei smirked. He hadn't been able to help but wonder for a second if they truly had this sort of relationship in the bedroom, but… Duo couldn't look submissive if his life depended on it. Being someone's pet for real… naah. Not possible. 

"How come he's Great Master and I'm only Master?" asked Yuy. 

"Favoritism?"

"You're just licking his boots, hoping he doesn't get wary of your devilish ways before it's too late…" 

"You know me soooo well, Master… Hey, gimme tha coffee, Wu."

"It's Great Master Wu to you," answered the boy, mock-glaring at him. 

They all snickered. 

"You dun wanna see me kneel and kiss your feet either?" snorted Duo, sticking out a little bit of tongue. 

Damn, it was good, Chang felt it come back, the rhythm of their usual friendly banter, the barbed replies, the plays on words, exactly the same as it had been when they had been only friends. Wufei felt much more at ease suddenly. 

The Chinese pilot caressed pensively his chin, as if he was considering. "I don't know, submissive is a good look on you…"

"Oh yeah?" challenged the braided boy, his eyes gleaming maliciously. 

"Children, no battles at the kitchen table," asked Heero sternly. 

"Yes mom."

"It's Master to you," Heero shot back without missing a beat. 

Duo laughed.

"Ok, I give… I won't have the last word today, since you're ganging up on me like that."

"How could we have it if we didn't, knowing you?" asked Wufei dryly. Duo made a face and decided not to answer. They ate in a comfortable silence, giving each other amused smiles from time to time.

+

Once finished, Heero took care of the dishes while Duo put back the food. Wufei looked at them, they were acting so in tune that they almost never got into each other's way, feeling useless but not wanting to just up and leave like he would have done if it had been a normal day… a day before The Night, that is. Now he had a feeling his life wouldn't be what he had considered normal for quite some time. Well, anyway, he didn't want to leave them just like that without warning…

When they were finished, they looked at him then at each other. 

"I've got repairs to make on Deathscythe, someone wants to go to the hangar with me?" asked Duo. 

It was a half hour away in the woods in a straight line, and none of them would have attempted it because of the grounds, which made such a trek very difficult. The easy path went on long, annoying curves, but at least you didn't arrive with your clothes shredded and your knees and hands bloodied. And there was no way to go there using a bike or a car. Usually when they went there, they stayed most of the day, because making the trip took so much time. It made sense Duo wouldn't want to be alone all day up there.

"I have a meeting with a contact," said Wufei in a sorry tone. 

"I need to wait for information right here," added Heero, apologetic. Sadly, he needed to use the house's internet connection, using his Gundam's made it too likely to be spotted, and if he had to sacrifice something to avoid getting caught, he preferred it to be an old house, easily repaired, and that nobody would miss that much in case of total obliteration by OZ forces. 

The braided boy sighed. 

"Well, see you tonight I guess…"

He grabbed Heero by the neck and gave him a little kiss on the cheek, then walked to Wufei and pecked his nose, winking at him. Then he grabbed the sandwich he had made for himself before they came into the kitchen, and a bottle of water, and disappeared to his room to pack the things he would need. Heero and Wufei glanced at each other, then shrugged and went to take care of their occupations. 

"Later," Heero called as he left the room.

"Later," answered the other boy, sounding pensive in someway.

Heero wondered if he was having second thoughts too. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Guys? I've got a question."

Heero and Wufei glanced at Duo who was standing between them in the little bedroom, facing the bed under the roof, fists on his hips.

"How the fuck did the three of us fit on THAT?"

Wufei blinked and considered the small bed.

"That's a good question, you know," he mused, nodding pensively. 

Duo let out a disgusted snort. 

"With lots of mortgage on our future back health," answered Heero derisively, making a face as he stretched some protesting muscles, a leftover from the night before. 

Wufei snorted, Duo snickered. 

"There's no way I'm sleeping in this bed with you guys again. It was nice, but one night dreaming I was a sardine in its little box is more than enough for me, folks."

Wufei stared at the floor, pensive, reflexively biting his lower lip. 

"I could…"

He didn't even have the time to propose letting them sleep together in their bed while he returned to his own like he had intended to do. Duo had flung a bundle of covers and sheets at Heero, and was loading his arms with the pillows before he could find his words. The Chinese boy blinked over his armful.

"Duo?"

"Duo, what the hell are you doing?" asked Yuy calmly.

"You'll see!!"

He was dragging the mattress to the floor. It landed with a loud thud, on his feet, but didn't deter the tornado one second. The braided boy propped up one side of the mattress and began to drag it through the door. He had some trouble maneuvering the thing through the corridor, but finally succeeded in making it fit, and dragged it to the staircase with renewed energy. The two Asian boys followed in confusion, exchanging startled glances. 

"Wu? Could you go to the living room and drag the little table with the phone to the other side of the room, please? And just put your pillows on the couch."

Bemused, Wufei obeyed. It was always funny to go along with Duo's ideas, anyway. Well, most of the time. When he wasn't the target of said ideas.

After having thrown his armful on the couch, he put the little table as far from the staircase as was possible. If he read Duo correctly, the mattress would go descending the stairs in a few minutes. Gods, but the thing was hideous, what with its twisted-over legs and the little crocheted tablemat. Would not have been a big loss if the mattress ended up crushing it, but still, the house wasn't theirs after all. 

"OK!!" he called. 

The mattress went rolling to its edge, then crashed to the floor once it was free of the walls of the staircase. Duo went bounding down the stairs after it, and dragged it with enthusiasm between the low couch and the fireplace. He passed Heero running, bounding up, and they heard his feet slap against the planks and a door opening with a bang. A minute later, he was back with Wufei's mattress in tow. 

"Maxwell…"

"Pyjama party!! Ain't it a great idea? Go fetch your pillows, Wu-love, we've got to make this as comfortable as possible!"

The Chinese boy started. Wu-love? And Duo hadn't even seemed to realize he had called him by a pet name…

He had a pet name. He didn't know if he should feel annoyed or all fuzzy inside; feeling fuzzy didn't seem very becoming for a serious young man like he was… But hell, it was what he was feeling anyway, so there. 

Wu-love. 

He bit the inside of his cheek and stalked up the stairs.

+

"I could learn to really love this," sighed Duo contentedly. 

He stretched and let himself fall flat on his back, arms crossed behind his head. The low, fluffy couch provided a very comfortable headrest, and the two mattresses crammed between it and the chimney were so covered in comforters and pillows that it looked more like a nest than any kind of human bedding. Near to their feet, the fire danced merrily in the depths of the chimney, not close enough to burn, just close enough to warm them nicely. Sitting cross-legged at his right, Wufei was staring at its orange and red depths, looking hypnotized. The flames made his skin glow in warm tones, and his dark eyes seemed softer. There were bangs escaping from his ponytail, framing his face, erasing the usual harshness of his features. His knee was brushing against Duo's hip, and the braided boy wanted to purr. It was so perfect. Even more perfect when he looked left, because on the left, there was Heero, leaning against the couch, his eyes half-closed, dozing off, his hands crossed on his belly, near enough that he could feel his warmth against his side. Rrowr.

Well, it would be better if he didn't know perfectly well that Wufei didn't lean back and enjoy the comfort because he was too tense for that. Which Duo couldn't see because the man had control of his body language, but could feel anyway. He didn't know yet what to do to make them relax in each other's presence, but he thought about it, and he thought hard. 

Heero was voluntarily acting laid-back to show that he accepted Wufei being so close in an intimate situation, but the Chinese pilot wasn't sure yet that it was true. He was acting skittish, in a way, always checking with Heero's reactions to his acts to see if he hadn't passed a line. Duo hoped he would accept that he was here to stay and had as much the right as the other boy to be in this relationship. But in a way, he knew that it wasn't quite true. Because if Heero hadn't proposed, the said relationship would never have begun. And if Heero decided to change his mind, it would all crumble. Wufei knew that Duo wasn't a problem, because he knew that the braided boy loved them both equally, but Heero tolerated him like someone who had to be tolerated for Duo's sake, nothing more.

Or so the Chinese boy thought. The American had caught Heero more than once an amused, sorta condescending, and somewhat affectionate look on his face when the two Asians had just had a disagreement, and Wufei turned away to leave, in annoyance if he had lost or in pride if he had won, even before he had told Heero of his love for the both of them. Heero liked Wufei, Duo could tell. Now, how he liked him was another matter entirely. If it was friendship, or a sort of brotherly thing, or a strange rivalry thing… 

Damn. It was too late and he had worked too long today to think about that. Time to get to sleep. His brain was thinking fuzzy thoughts, sure sign that he should rest.

Fighting the sleepiness, he sat up in a leap, making Wufei start and Heero glance at him, puzzled. 

"I wanna sleep."

And before one of them could ask him what was preventing him from doing so, he had grabbed Wufei by the neck and had fallen on his back again, dragging him after him. 

"Hey!!" protested the boy. 

"You go to sleep too. I need cuddles to fall asleep, so there," he added, mock-pouting. The Chinese boy snorted at his antics, a little ill at ease anyway.

He snuggled against Wufei's side, snaking an arm around his torso, then looked back. Heero was observing them, unreadable.

"What are you waiting for?" Duo asked in mock-annoyance. He indicated with his chin that Heero was to come nearer, then, as he didn't comply fast enough, the braided boy rolled on his back, caught Heero's arm, wound it around his chest, then turned around again to cuddle against Wufei, making the Japanese boy spoon him.

Duo sighed happily. "There is no way I'm sleeping alone ever again," he informed his two boyfriends, his voice muffled in Wufei's shoulder. Heero laughed and wriggled closer, molding his front to Duo's back. 

Wow. The best of two worlds. His head on a strong shoulder, his arms around someone's waist, and a hard body plastered against his backside, all at the same time. Heaven. 

"No way in hell…" repeated the braided boy, feeling the first stirrings of sleep invading his mind. 

+ 

Wufei sighed, relaxing slowly into the embrace. He was still unused to being so intimate, to having the right to be so intimate, with the boy he had been crushing on for so long. And it had been even longer since he had touched anyone so intimately. 

His mother had stopped hugging and cuddling him when he had been about six, and his father had never done it to begin with. Then there was Meiran, who was supposed to be his wife, but with whom he had never even shared a bed. They had been supposed to, and had had many angry talks about the invisible line not to ever cross, but finally he had just gone to sleep elsewhere… to find out that she had done the same, anyway. Never used marital bed… The only contact he had ever had with her had been the fight, her fists on his belly, his own against her cheek. And those rare encounters after their most intense fights, which couldn't really be called making love. Mating, probably, or something like that. Even then, the contacts hadn't been tender at all. 

In a family of Chinese descent and culture, you didn't hug or kiss. You bowed, you nodded. You didn't touch. Ever. What a shock it had been for him the first time Duo had glomped him after a battle, the second or so they had fought together. He had pushed him back, violently, just refraining himself from hitting because the braided boy hadn't meant anything by the gesture, had just let loose some of the battle excitement he still felt coursing in his veins. Miffed by the rejection, Duo had decided to make it his personal goal to hug him as often as he could, to relax him. After a while in which he had discovered that Maxwell was about the most stubborn person in the galaxy, Wufei had just stopped trying to escape his clutches and had let himself be hugged, just waiting for it to stop. After another while, he had found out that he kind of liked it.

After yet another while, he had realized that he would have wanted it to be more. More contact, for longer, maybe a different kind of hug too. Totally floored by that realization, he had avoided Duo for a while, trying to make sense of this strange attraction. Then he had admitted to himself what he felt. But by then it was too late; Duo had been with Heero. The braided boy still hugged him every time he got the chance, but Wufei just went back to his old way of bearing the hug, stiff and distant, just counting the seconds until it finally ended, not letting himself appreciate it too much. Maxwell was Yuy's from now on. Off limits. 

It wasn't as if the enthusiastic pilot could like a sarcastic, cold, haughty boy like himself in any other way than as a sort of friend. 

A lock of dark gold hair slid against his cheek, tickling his nose. Wufei lifted a hand and caught it between his fingers, letting the soft strands slide against his rough fingertips. Duo mumbled and his hand slid to Wufei's belly, and the Chinese boy sighed silently, a tiny smile on his lips. 

The hug was definitely not one of the kinds you submitted your just-friends to. 

On a whim, he rolled on his side to press his chest against Duo's, sliding an arm around his waist to hug back. 

And froze. He had brushed against Heero's arm. Startled, he glanced over Duo's shoulder, to see dark blue eyes looking back. He removed his arm, awkwardly letting it fall on his own hip, but Duo's arm made it not very comfortable. He wanted to bend it to rest his hand on Duo's shoulder, but the contact would probably wake the boy up. 

Damn. And why couldn't he put his arm around Duo's waist too? he thought with annoyance. Just because Heero's arm was already there… There was enough room. He just had to hug higher, that was all. 

He carefully slid his arm around Duo's torso, stupidly ashamed because he knew that Heero was awake, and was looking at him putting the moves on Duo. But the braided boy was his boyfriend too now, he had a right to hug him back! Annoyed at himself as much as at Heero for his supposed thoughts, he closed his eyes, nesting his hand just under Duo's braid.

+

Heero smirked awkwardly. His own hand was closed on Duo's braid, only two folds higher. He toyed with the idea of letting it go, knowing that if Wufei moved his hand they would touch, but finally he didn't move. If he moved now Wufei would feel it and know that they were nearly touching anyway. And, hell, they were sleeping in the same bed, of course they could end up touching! He didn't have cooties anyway, so there wasn't a problem. Damn, they had even slept in each other's arms yesterday, so he didn't understand why he was feeling so skittish now. It was stupid. Damn his emotions. 

He closed his eyes too, gently kissing Duo's nape as was his pre-sleep ritual, and wondering about a time where Wufei and him would feel comfortable enough in each other's presence that they wouldn't fear ending up in contact. 

He didn't get to really sleep until much later. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heero woke up to the smell of toast and coffee. 

__

'Damn, how does he do that?' he wondered when he realized that Duo had escaped from between the two other boys without even waking them up. Hard thing to do when he had been sandwiched between them, their arms around his body…

… oh. Oops. 

Wufei's arm was resting on Heero's hip, Heero's wrist brushing against the Chinese boy's torso. The messy-haired pilot swore. How was he to disengage without waking the other boy up? He froze, embarrassed, totally undecided, unable to find a way. 

+

Black, slanted eyes fluttered open, slowly. And then widened when the face that greeted them wasn't the one he had been waiting for. And Heero looked as flushed as he felt. Shit. He froze for a second, then began to lift his arm, realizing with shame the place it had been resting over. Damn, and for a moment, before being totally awake, he had enjoyed the contact, thinking it was Duo… Damn damn damn!

+

"Wow, that's such an erotic picture you two make together like that, resting face to face and barely touching at all... Methinks I should take a picture. A life-sized poster of you two would look good in DeathScythe's cockpit…"

The two Asian boys jumped out of the bed-nest faster than if it had been on fire, their faces red. Bent over the couch's back, Duo was laughing his ass off at them, tears of mirth in his eyes, pointing to them and clapping his thigh. 

"You…" growled Yuy, advancing menacingly. Wufei imitated him on his other side, cutting Duo off from another escape route. 

"Eep!"

__

'Mission accomplished,' thought Duo while running away from the two homicidal boys. _'Now they're not worrying about waking up together anymore… But how the hell am I gonna get out of here alive ?'_


	2. Chapter Two

****

Walking the Tightrope – Chapter 02

Author: Asuka Kureru (asukasama@ifrance.com**)**

Homepage: http://www.chez.com/oniryu/asuka/index.html

****

Beta-reader: My Arabiana-love ^___^ *cuddles Ara-chan*

Series: Gundam Wing 

Warnings: Yaoi, romance, sap, love triangle, threesome, heavy lime to nearly full lemon, dunno yet; the POV is shifting between the boys. 

Couple (trio?) : 1+**2**+**5, 1**x**2**x**5**x**2**x**1 and diverse combinations ^__^ **

Disclaimer: They're sharing, why can't we do the same? ;_;

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"That new movie looks good, whatcha think, Heero?"

The Japanese boy turned on his chair to look at his boyfriend. Duo was sprawled out on the couch behind him, a magazine held in front of his face, looking very carefully at the announcements written therein, and had been since Heero had begun working on his laptop, some two hours ago. He half-sat and stretched an arm toward Heero, showing him the article he had been reading. Heero glanced at the pictures; lots of action and a few martial artists here and there, all quite good-looking. Heero thought that it was probably the live movie of a video game Duo had enjoyed playing very much the last time they had been in a town big enough to have a games center. 

Well, ok, actually, Heero had enjoyed playing too, even if many of the moves had been totally unbelievable. 

They had exploded the record of high scores. It had been fun, especially the relief on the face of the director when they told him they wouldn't be coming back. They had totally ransacked his shop. 

"Hmm… From a game, huh? I don't know if it's really worth seeing, but at least it shouldn't be too bad, from the listed actors and the director," he commented noncommittally.

"Yeah, true, usually movies made after a video game are lame, but this one seems to be a little better… and I love the heroes and the storyline anyway. And there is this martial artist that you like, yanno, the only one you didn't diss because it was obvious he didn't know what he was doing in the last movie we saw … ne? ne? ne?" 

Playfully, Duo sprawled on his back, his head hanging from the edge of the couch seat, his braid falling on the ground, and shot him his best starved puppy look. Heero snorted. 

"I'll do everything for you master, please, I wasgood on my last mission, can't I have a reward? pwease…" 

Heero growled at him, his eyes gleaming, amused against his own wishes. His lover was so kissable like that… It had been a while since he and Duo had been on a date… 

…But he had work to do, he reminded himself when he glanced at his laptop's screen, where the new data was still blinking, waiting for him to acknowledge it. Heero sighed regretfully. 

"I have work to do today, Duo. I've received tons of information on those new bases built in Australia and India, I need to correlate all of it as fast as I can…" 

"Oh…" 

Duo didn't pout to make Heero feel bad about refusing him, but it needed a conscious effort from him. He knew that Heero's work was important, more important than a date. Things were calm and peaceful at the moment, and so he had authorized himself to feel more relaxed, but the war was still going on, and many guerilla fighters needed Heero's input and supervision to make their efforts coincide. 

He sighed. Too bad about the date, but after all it wasn't the first time that they had had to postpone plans to a later date for the greater good. 

"I'll take a raincheck then…" he said, trying for joyful but only sounding dejected.

"The movie won't be on anymore…" remarked Heero, going back to typing but still listening to his lover. 

"Yeah I know, but what else can we do?" sighed the braided boy.

"You can take Wufei," Heero suggested in a detached voice. 

He had had the idea floating around in his head since he had remembered he couldn't go, but hadn't voiced it earlier. It was silly, after all he was the one who had suggested that they try this threesome thing, but… He feared, stupidly, that if they went to have fun together, without him, they would… bond, excluding him from their distractions, and that they would see things together, have fun together, and then, when they'd come back to him, sometimes they would happen to talk about things he didn't know about because he hadn't been there and have private jokes he wouldn't understand, and they wouldn't even realize it… It was hard to put words on the feeling, but he feared being excluded. As long as they did things in the house, when he was there too, he could always see what they did together, even if he didn't participate, and know where they were, how far into their relationship they had gone, what happened between them. 

But it was so stupid to feel like that. Wufei would never know many things that had passed between Duo and him, Heero and Duo would always have private jokes and moments of understanding where Wufei would feel excluded. It always happened with anyone being with another person for any length of time. There were things that Heero and Wufei had shared that Duo didn't know about, too… There were even things that he had shared with Trowa that no one knew about. 

He was not going to be jealous of each and every person Duo had known and talked to. He hadn't been so needy, so possessive when they had first gotten together, so why now? And trying to have a fusion-like relationship with Duo would only kill their love by suffocation. 

Duo was mulling over the idea, blinking. "I didn't even think of that," he admitted.

Heero felt ashamed about feeling better. 

"… Yeah, it's a good idea!… It doesn't bother you?" Duo asked, hesitating between a happy grin and a more considerate expression. 

"I proposed it, would I have if it bothered me? Wufei is your boyfriend too, isn't he? Why shouldn't you go out on dates with him from time to time?"

Duo blushed suddenly, grinning from eat to ear. "Wufei's my boyfriend too…" he repeated. "I don't know why, when I hear that sentence I wanna jump on the couch like a five-year-old and begin to howl to the moon or something!" the braided boy admitted sheepishly, grinning like a fool. 

Heero chuckled, amused at his lover's openness. 

"Yeah, you're right, Fei and me should go on dates sometimes! I'm gonna ask him!!" decided the boy, jumping on his feet. "You sure you don't wanna come, though? You can, you know…" he added, a little lower, looking tenderly at his lover. "I'd like for the three of us to go out together sometimes…"

"Not this time, Duo, I still have work to do," answered Heero. "Plus it wouldn't be fair to Wufei if he never gets to have you just for himself from time to time. Maybe another time…?"

"Maybe? Certainly, yes! Don't work too hard, kk?" he grinned at him, already bouncing toward the door. 

"Don't have too much fun," Heero called amusedly after him, turning back to his laptop.

Duo stopped at the door, turned around to look at him, one hand on the wall, and then, in two big strides, was standing behind his chair. Heero didn't quite have the time to turn around to face him, though, and was surprised when his lover's arms encircled his shoulders. 

"Wouldn't want to forget this," whispered Duo, his breath caressing his neck. He kissed him on the cheek and squeezed his shoulder, then pecked his mouth when Heero turned his head to look at him. "I love you," he breathed, his voice intense, staring him right in the eye. 

And two seconds later, the Japanese boy was alone in the room, and he could hear Duo running in the corridor and bursting through the back door, calling to Wufei happily. 

Heero caressed his cheek, slowly, briefly feeling warm and tingling inside, in a place he couldn't quite pinpoint. 

His laptop beeped at him, and Heero turned his attention to it, pushing back the fleeting feelings the discussion had evoked in him. Enough with the niceties. It was time to work. 

+

As he was stepping outside in search of his newer boyfriend, Duo was still feeling rather strange about the conversation he had had with Heero. He had been with Heero for so long, and now, going on a date with someone other than him… He didn't know if he should feel like he was cheating on his lover with his best friend, what Wufei had been for him for even longer than Heero and him had been a couple. 

Wow, he was going out with his best friend. How weird was that? Duo wondered. But Wufei loved him and he loved Wufei, so it should be ok, once they got used to it… Maybe they wouldn't even have to change their relationship that much, except now they had the right to get more intimate physically and sexually speaking. They were pretty close as friends already. 

He hoped he could keep Wufei as a friend even while he was his lover. He enjoyed so much all those things they had debated on, often for hours…

Duo stopped at the entry to the garage and stared into the darker room. Wufei was verifying his bike, seeming to enjoy himself quite thoroughly. He had a dark smudge on his cheek. Duo wanted to lick it away, even if on second thought it probably tasted very nasty.

"Hey," he called quietly.

Wufei looked up and gave a small smile before returning to the piece of metal he had been tweaking. 

"Wait a second… Ok. What did you want?" he asked, wiping his hands on a rag. 

"Are you really occupied with your bike? I mean, can I convince you of doing something else?"

Wufei blinked and began to get up, and Duo gave him a hand to help him, which he finally caught after an awkward second of hesitation. Duo dragged him up, a little too hard, and they ended up chest to chest, their faces very close to each other's…

… ok, with the way the American's eyes twinkled with merriment, it hadn't been an accident. Wufei felt his face heat up some and frowned to cover it up, hoping that Duo's eyes wouldn't be used to the lack of light yet.

"Perhaps, depends on what you try to entice me with, I guess…"

Duo slid an arm around his neck casually, and guided him to the door. Wufei felt his cheeks flush some more. Damn, damn, damn! Yes, Duo was brushing against his side and hanging onto his neck in a proprietary way? So what? … Ok, ok, it felt good. Great even. So what? 

"There's a new movie I wanna see, but I don't wanna go alone. It's an action flick with some good martial arts actors, does it interest you yet?"

A movie? It had been a long time since the two of them had gone to see a movie.

"Hmm. I don't know… I don't have any money left on my personal stash, it all went into the bottomless pit that is that damn bike's maintenance. All that I have is OZ accounts, and I don't want to touch them for the moment."

"Silly! Don't you know that on a date it's the one who invites who has to pay?" grinned the braided boy. 

Wufei started and stared at the boy.

"A date…?"

"Yeah, silly… Me, you, a movie… Boyfriends are supposed to go on dates from time to time, you know," snickered Duo, enjoying the total surprise. It was a rare treat to see Wufei Chang off balance for more than a few seconds.

"Oh. Err." He coughed in his hand, politely, darting nervous glances around.

"You had forgotten that now we could, ne? Don't worry, I did too… To be truthful, it was Heero who reminded me," Duo added with a sheepish look, looking very apologetic. "I should have remembered to take you on a date alone, but I'm still not used to this two boyfriends business…"

"I'm not used to it either, Duo, it's not a problem, it just needs time," Wufei reassured him. He smiled at him to make him understand that he wasn't feeling hurt that it was Heero who had thought of that. In fact it was very thoughtful of the other Asian pilot… And very sweet of Duo to ask him like that, and to be truthful even when forgetting to mention their partner's responsibility would have made him look better. It was slightly paradoxical, Wufei supposed, but it was what he was feeling. Duo's rigorous uprightness was one of the things which had made him fall in love with the man, after all. 

"So, we going?"

"Sure, why not. I expect you to pay for my drinks and food, too," he added jokingly.

"I never would have figured you for the junk food type, Wu…" Duo shook his head, bewildered. 

"That's because getting addicted to junk food is the best way of ensuring I never have enough money saved for my bike," answered the other boy in a slightly mocking voice. "I never said I didn't like it."

"Oh, so you're the one who's been stealing my stash!"

"Oops," deadpanned the Asian teenager.

The Chinese boy, not looking guilty in the least, took off running without warning. 

"WUFEI!!! COME BACK HERE!!!"

+

Duo didn't catch Wufei before the Chinese teen was in his room, but then, it was because he wasn't running anymore, but bent over a drawer, rummaging through the contents. The braided boy took a flying leap and jumped on his back, making him falter and nearly flatten his nose on the wood of the chest of drawers. 

"Ooof!! DUO!!"

"That's what you get for messing with my stash!!!" Duo hollered, rubbing his knuckles on the other boy's skull.

Wufei moved back to the bed and let himself fall flat on his back, crushing Duo under his weight, then rolled away when the other boy, surprised, let him go. Calmly, he walked back to the open drawer and began searching inside again, as composed as if nothing had happened at all. 

"You're no fun…"

"Stop trying to pout at me, I'm not even looking at you," advised the boy in a calm and slightly haughty voice.

Duo burst out laughing. 

"My boyfriend the psychic!!"

Wufei chuckled, for once not even jumping when he heard Duo say 'my boyfriend' while referring to him. 

"Here it is," he finally said, getting a backpack out of the drawer. "Perfect to pack just a few things." 

He grabbed his gun and two clips of ammo and hid them inside before grabbing a poncho, in case it rained suddenly.

"Go get yours, we can put it inside too."

"I'm keeping my gun on me," Duo warned him.

"Of course," answered the boy. "What do we need apart from that?"

"Hmm. Water."

"I'll go to the kitchen, go fetch the program so we can see when there is a performance," suggested the black-haired boy.

They met in the kitchen later, packing the bottle of water, the second poncho and a few things Duo had deemed necessary, like shades that 'looked cool'. 

"There's a performance in two hours" said Duo, leaning on his shoulder to show him the magazine. "We can walk through the woods to go to the bus stop, I've seen other teens there often, people probably wouldn't notice us too much."

"Fine by me."

Duo bounced to the living room. "Heero! We're going!" he called, pouncing on the working boy and kissing his neck noisily. "Think of taking a pause from time to time, ok lover?" he added, his affectionate whisper meant only for the Japanese teen's ears.

"Ok," Heero answered, as low as him. 

He glanced at Wufei, who was standing on the doorstep and carefully not looking at them to give them their privacy.

"Keep him out of trouble… well, try at least," Heero called in an ironic tone. Duo huffed, taking offense at the comment. 

"I am not ALWAYS getting in trouble!!!"

"Of course not, dear…" agreed Heero in too much of a soothing tone to be sincere. 

"…It just has a habit of finding you all on its own," continued Wufei without missing a beat.

"Haha. Cute. How come you two are only in tune when you want to make fun of me? Wu, let's go before you two decide to gang up on me again."

They walked outside, and Heero could see them move away for a little while before they disappeared between the trees. They were talking animatedly, laughing even, and he had never seen Wufei so carefree, and Duo hadn't been that radiant for a long while. 

__

'I'm not doing the damn self-pity thing again,' Heero growled at himself before turning back to his work. 

For a while he was unable to concentrate, too many images were gathered in his head since he had made the proposition to Wufei until today, crowding him, images of his incredulity and sincere emotion when Heero had asked, images of Duo and the Chinese teen, grinning at each other with no reason other than they were deliriously happy to be together at last, images…

… That hurt, in a way, because Duo was tender and loving as always with him, but with Wufei, he was… Still dazed. Still crushing. Still in l… 

It was just the novelty of it, he was sure of that. Duo didn't even act as if he preferred one of them. It was just that, well, they were still in the honeymoon stage. Once it went away, things would settle down, he was sure. 

He shoved back these thoughts, as far as he could, and totally absorbed himself in what his computer screen taught him.

After all, with the caseload he had, he wouldn't have finished for long when they came back. 

Unaware that he was even doing it, he worked faster yet, as if finishing sooner would make them come back sooner, too. 

+

The walk in the woods was nice. There were speckles of light dancing everywhere on the green of the leaves, and birds singing merrily. The path in the woods, while bumpy by places, was easy to follow. They talked some, just walked silently at each other's side some more, just appreciating the moment for all it was worth, both of them feeling strangely elated when Duo's hand brushed Wufei from time to time, or Wufei's shoulder Duo's. 

Fuck the butterflies. It was, Duo thought, as if there were damn birds nesting just under his heart, and they were trying to fly free through his stomach, beak first. They had done that before, walking in the woods together, but it had never made him feel like this. And it annoyed him, slightly. He sounded like a romantic girl. 

Shaking himself out of his daze, he looked at the raven-haired boy… and caught him glancing at him with a wondering look on his face.

"What are you thinking about, Wu?"

"Nothing," mumbled the boy, blushing slightly. 

Duo had to bite his tongue not to ask what the blush was about. Wufei was so cute when he was flustered… And telling him so would probably send the braided boy right to the doghouse. He took his hand and interlaced their fingers, squeezing slightly, as if he hadn't even seen the reaction.

It had felt strange at first to walk holding hands with someone that was not Heero. Wufei's hand was narrower, with longer, nervous fingers, even if his palm was as rough as the other Asian's was. His calluses weren't in the same place, some being due to a gun and the controls of his Gundam like theirs, but some others were due to using a sword. He didn't walk in the same way either, didn't rock as much with each step, was in fact nearly flowing from one step to the other. It was strange getting used to another synchronization, another way of walking together. But easy too. As if he had been made for synchronizing with them… Argh. He was romancing things again. 

__

'I sound like a love-struck schoolgirl…Ok, I am in love and I am old enough to be in school, but still. Mushy stuff was never my style anyway. I'm a guy, damnit!'

Without warning, he snatched Wufei's hair band and took off running. Enough with the cute stuff. They were gonna have fun today. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heero finished typing up his report of the situation and stretched. It hadn't been very hard, but tedious, and annoying. Just a bunch of things to compile together. The only interesting part had been the creation of a program making a secure road for the report to be distributed to its receiver. 

Sighing and carefully rolling his head form side to side to ease the tension, he took for the first time in hours the measure of the silence in the little house. Not even the noises of the town behind. They were lost so far in the woods that to hear something from the town, it would have to be something along the magnitude of a nuclear bomb exploding. It was good usually, because it meant that they had total privacy, but just now, it was bad, because he was not used to silence and solitude anymore. 

__

'Damn,' he thought, looking at the clock, _'I've worked too fast, they won't be here for at least another hour, maybe two or three if they're having fun…'_

Having fun, together. It was not hard to imagine. Wufei was reserved too, but less so than him… And contrary to him, Duo hadn't had to push and pull for months before getting him to have some fun. Well… Not that he knew about. 

He nearly decided to go and find them, but then he thought that he would come off as the intrusive boyfriend, nosey, unwilling to let them have time alone, and that was something he didn't want.

He got up and stretched carefully, wondering if doing some exercise would be good for him. Instead, he went to the window, pushing back the flimsy curtain, and pensively considered the path leading to the woods by which they had left. 

He remembered the times, at the beginning of their association, when Duo had tried to get him to go out, to do something other than mission preparations. He had had to work on him for so long before Heero finally relented, and accepted to accompany him outside just because it would make him lose less time than hearing Duo trying to convince him that he should come. He hadn't had any fun that first time, nor the second, nor the third. But it had taken less time to make him appreciate the things they did, the movies they saw, the places they went to, than it had taken just to make him accept to get out. And it nearly took no time at all between the moment he admitted that yes, he was having fun, and the time he was the one to suggest they go out.

But then, it took a few months for him to realize that he was feeling strangely about Duo. That he thought about him too much, that he was too worried, that he tried too hard to protect him, for it to be merely friendship, something he had already had a hard time accepting. He had read and read, and surfed the net, to try to find clues. Were friends supposed to be that attached to each other? Were friends, male friends, supposed to like being in close proximity with each other so much? 

As for putting a name on the feeling… 

Not before that mission that nearly turned bad; that mission when Duo came back days late, and limping, and he rushed out to make sure that Duo was alright, relieved that he was even alive, and then, he felt true fear, because Duo was here, and whatever physical wounds he had could heal, but Heero didn't know how to heal the crack in his eyes. He had seemed broken inside, and that was the only thing Heero had never learned how to mend in all of his first-aid training. 

He remembered, for the first time, being the one to hound his partner and ask and ask again what had happened, what he was feeling, why he was feeling, asked him to explain it to him, and finally, Duo had only relented because Heero had made him admit that he would have done the same thing had the roles been reversed. 

There had been street rats hiding in that base, probably trying to steal some stuff, exactly like he had done during his childhood, and he hadn't been able to prevent the explosion, hadn't been able to prevent from killing them all, those orphans, just like he had been, just trying to survive and get back at OZ. 

Heero didn't even remember clearly what had happened, after Duo breaking down in tears and clutching at him and them sitting back on the bed, didn't remember clearly when it had changed from him comforting Duo to… him… '_comforting' _Duo…

Ah, well. It hadn't been as if Duo had protested. Quite the contrary. Once the surprise passed, he had kissed and hugged back with a stunning passion, totally flabbergasting Heero who had been sure he was going to get his ass kicked. And… well. 

And the morning after, Duo had still seemed a little sad over it, but not as devastated as he had been. Heero had resolved to use that method lots and lots of times in case of future sadness of his friend… and had realized finally that this sort of things wasn't done between friends, but between lovers. It had been an epiphany. 

The Japanese pilot let the curtain fall back in place, and with a sigh went to drag a fluffy chair over by the window. He sad down heavily, and, pensive, his eyes wandering outside, continued to daydream about him, his lover, and his lover's best friend… and soon to be his boyfriend's other lover, he supposed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They sat in the last row, glancing nervously at another couple a few rows ahead that was exchanging loud, slurpy kind of kisses, and the movie had not even begun. Duo laughed, but it was shaky at best. The boy already had one hand on his girl's thigh, and they weren't even trying to hide. The lights were still on, damn it. 

"Why don't we do that too?" whispered Duo at Wufei, jokingly, still glancing at the couple that were making a show of themselves. 

Wufei glared at him. "Yes, of course, Duo. Let's make out on the grand place too, while we're at it."

"They seem to be having fun," answered Duo with a wink. 

Were this a normal outing like they had done sometimes, between friends, Wufei would have shot back a vicious retort and they would have begun to diss them, then would have gotten into a friendly argument. It was not a normal outing. Wufei remembered, and flushed hot red. 

"… Wu?" asked Duo, surprised and feeling a little awkward. "Was it something I said…?"

"Ah… it's nothing,", answered the black-eyed boy, coughing nervously.

They shyly looked away, darting glances here and there, but never truly looking at each other, suddenly feeling very strange. Duo wondered what had happened. 

"Yanno, it's not because we're on a date like them that we have to act as vulgarly as that," he remarked, thinking all along that it was really one of the most tactless, foot-in-mouth things he had ever said. 

Wufei spluttered, taken by surprise. 

"Yeah, I guess," he agreed, coughing again. 

He glanced at Duo. The boy was studying his feet, or more precisely the way his shoelaces went from one hole to the other. 

"Hey, Duo," mumbled Wufei, nudging him. 

"Hmm?"

"…what's the matter?"

"I'm cool," answered the boy, puzzled.

"No, I mean… between us. Don't tell me you don't feel it too…"

Duo sighed. There was no use trying to ignore it. 

"I don't know… It's like I feel so silly, because you're my boyfriend now, so I gotta act different than when you'n'me were just friends, yanno. You don't react the same, and I'm being extra careful, too. It's as if we don't know each other all over again, and I'm trying to impress my date or something… Which is silly, because you know me already."

Wufei nodded, understanding what Duo was talking about. It was as if they had just begun their relationship all over again, erasing the previous patterns they had established. Which was stupid. They didn't have to erase it all to begin anew, just to add some new ones. They had loved each other before admitting it, it only added yet another level to their relationship, it didn't take the place of the rest. 

"It's true. We're the same people we were before. I guess it's just the added dimension to our relationship… But it's not because we're together that we have to stop being friends too… I promise I'll try not to feel self-conscious like that again, ok?"

Duo nodded. It made perfect sense for him. 

"Ok… We jus' gotta act like friends, but friends who can kiss too…?" he said, sounding a little unsure. 

Wufei blushed, but smiled warmly at the same time. He felt Duo's hand slide on the armrest and brush against his, and caught it, casually interlacing their fingers. 

"Fine by me. So, let's talk about the two people currently disgracing themselves in front of our chaste eyes…"

+

"Well, the movie was… Good." coughed Duo.

"Yes, very good," agreed Wufei.

They glanced at each other, and smirked/grinned. 

"Tell me the truth, Duo, you don't remember half of it."

"Errr…" coughed the boy. "And what if I don't?!" he challenged, mock-glaring. 

"We came here especially to see the movie you were ranting about…" The Chinese boy remarked.

"Yeah, well, I don't regret anything. I'd rather make out with you than watch a stupid movie anyway, so there."

Wufei felt himself blush at his boyfriend's brashness and decided to answer back fast so that Duo didn't realize and joke about his prudishness. 

"We could have made out anywhere, no need to go there and pay for that…"

"Ah!! But it wouldn't have been half as fun! You don't understand anything about dating traditions anyway."

"Yes, well, next time let's chose a bad movie, so you don't regret having missed it, ok?" 

Duo snickered. 

"Good idea for a date, but when you really want to see the movie… And I don't want to come back alone, it's not fun… I know!! We'll come back with Heero later, he wanted to see it too. A not-a-date type of, err… bonding session?"

Wufei snorted. 

"If we do that, maybe I'll be able to see the half I missed, provided you share your time equally between him and me…"

"Are you telling me that I am unable to resist the appeals of a muscled male body pressed against me in the dark?"

"Yes," Wufei answered dryly. Duo mock-frowned and sighed dejectedly.

"Damn. And here I was hoping I had you fooled…"

"Not a second, my dear, not a second…" snorted Wufei, patting his shoulder. 

"Can you blame me, though?" drawled the braided boy, pressing himself tight against Wufei and sliding his hands around his hips, making the other boy freeze, taken by surprise. 

Wufei was still staring at him, bewildered, his heart beating fast, when the devilish fiend suddenly caught a handful of his butt and squeezed before running away, laughing his ass off for the face the Chinese boy had made. 

"MAXWELL!! WILL YOU STOP PAWING ME, YOU PERVERTED FIEND!?!!"

+

They roamed the mall and the little streets of the town for two hours before deciding to come back home. Well, Wufei decided he'd had enough of his butt being on the receiving hand of Duo's slaps, caresses, pinches and squeezes. People were giving them weird looks on the streets and it annoyed him. 

"Are you yanking my chain because you saw that it was annoying, or are you really just that horny? Isn't Yuy giving you any?" the black-haired boy finally blurted out after having caught Duo's fingers trying to insinuate themselves in his waistband. He felt bad for a second at what could be considered badmouthing Duo's lover, but Duo didn't take it badly, and began to laugh out loud, attracting stares but not giving a damn. 

"Not since I came back to find you together in bed, love, but that's not the point."

"What IS the point, then?" asked Wufei dutifully, sighing. 

"What is to say that _I _don't want to give _YOU_ some?"

Chang felt his face burn, and rather than answering, he began to walk to the bus stop, fast. 

Surprised, Duo didn't follow right away. Damn. Had he offended him? He could never know on which subject his Chinese boyfriend was going to be touchy, even if he was much less oversensitive than he had been at the beginning of the war. He ran after him, catching his sleeve, and tugged a little. 

"Wufei…"

The raven-haired boy turned his head to face his boyfriend, surprised by his tone. He sounded unsure, nearly shy. 

"What?"

"Did I… Did I offend you? I didn't mean to, honest, I just… Are you angry with me?"

The Chinese boy blinked, realizing a little late that his departure had been quite abrupt and that he hadn't given Duo any incentive to believe that he didn't take the joke badly. 

"No, why would I… I wasn't angry, Duo, just surprised."

"Sure? Then why did you leave so… oh."

Wufei had caught Duo's wrist and had pressed the back of his hand to the front of his trousers. Blushing, looking elsewhere to see if there was someone observing them, he let Duo's hand fall away. 

For once, Duo was speechless. Not leaving him the time to recover from his shock, Wufei grabbed his arm and dragged him to the bus stop. There were too many people there, hopefully it would deter the boy from asking questions Wufei would like to have time and quiet to answer. 

They waited in silence for the bus, not holding hands, not even looking at each other, but so close that they could feel the warmth of the other against their side. It was funny the way passers-by glanced at them, trying to stay inconspicuous, and Duo had played with that all day long, but now, thinking hard as he was, he didn't react to it in his usual way, which was to exuberantly kiss and pet his boyfriend to make them blush and look away, or stare and then be surprised by his knowing winks. 

The bus came and they climbed inside, Wufei leading the way to the end of the vehicle, Duo not even discretely ogling his butt like always, too surprised to take advantage of the view. 

Wufei sat down in the farthest corner of the vehicle, but Duo didn't take the place at his side, instead he grabbed the bar and leaned over him, hiding them from the other passengers' view. 

"Wufei?"

"Yes?" asked the boy, finally looking up to meet his eyes. There were emotions swirling in their depths, but shifting too fast for Duo to understand them. 

"Why did you… You know?"

"… It's silly I guess. I just… I was not permitting myself to think about you that way, never, because… well, you know. Sometimes I did anyway, but as soon as I was realizing it, it was a reflex, I tried to think about something else. It's so ingrained now, I just continued with that habit without even thinking twice."

"Not thinking about me.. that way?"

"Yes. Well, I did begin to think about you like that, but… It was vague at best, that's all. And you teasing me like that!" he managed to stress without talking any louder. "It was bad enough, but what you said…"

Duo coughed to hide his laughter. "Too precise for you, babe?"

"Don't call me that!" hissed the Chinese boy, darting looks around to see if someone was paying attention too closely to their discussion. "I'd rather we waited for our stop before talking about that, please." There was a cute little flush on his cheeks at the mention of… 'that'. The braided boy decided that, just for the blush, he was going to let him off the hook for now. 

"Ok, I guess. Now that I know you're not pissed at me, I can wait," Duo added while falling into the seat at the black-eyed boy's side. 

The rest of the ride took place normally as for a ride with Duo, that is, the boy chatting on and on about everything he saw out the window, and making inane comments on the other passengers. Finally, they came to their stop, and hopped off the bus. They waited for it to have disappeared behind a curve of the road before sliding into the brush and onto the discreet little path leading to their house. 

"So," asked Duo after a few minutes of walking in the woods. "Why did you react so violently to my suggesting things to you?"

Wufei sighed and thought that it had been stupid to hope that he wouldn't remember about asking.

"I just… I told you, I never thought precisely about… becoming your lover. Vague images, daydreams, but I never really tried to see it precisely, because I just knew I would never have it anyway, you know, so why torture myself with trying to imagine being your lover?"

Duo squeezed his hand and Wufei smiled at him, a little, barely there smile. 

"…And then, I became your boyfriend, and… It was already so much. Suddenly, I had the right to kiss you and hold your hand and not have to hide my feelings any longer, and silly stuff like that, and it was already so much, I just didn't have the time to really reflect on that point of our relationship."

__

'Sweet', thought Duo, swearing to himself not to ever say it. _'Wufei thinks about the physical part of our relationship as a nonessential side effect… A good side effect I hope, but still.'_

"Is it too soon for you to talk about it, Wu? I can understand that…"

"No, it's ok to talk about it, just…"

"Not to do it?"

Wufei blushed again. "I don't like the idea of setting a date, a timeframe. Can't we just get used to being boyfriends and become lovers naturally, when the right moment comes?"

The braided boy laughed a little and kissed his cheek noisily, just because he was so cute, and Chang Wufei being cute was really something priceless.

"Yes, sir!" he answered jokingly. "But… I had been throwing innuendoes all day long, why did this one touch you that deep?" he asked more seriously. 

The Chinese boy closed his eyes and clenched his teeth. He was becoming annoyed at the hotness in his cheeks. Why couldn't that damn embarrassing blush just disappear!

"… too precise for you?"

"Yeah… Kind of. It was just the mental image…"

"Of me taking you?" asked the other boy, bluntly. 

"Duo!!!"

"Why does it bother you so much more than the rest?" asked Duo, pressing. 

"I… I just… Don't get angry, ok?"

Wow. Must be something serious. "Ok."

"It's just that… I am not a virgin, Duo, you know that I was married, but…"

"But?"

"But she was a girl!"

"And?"

"And even if she had a worse temper and a stronger will than me, in the end it couldn't be any other way than me taking her! So… I just…"

"You never thought about the contrary being possible with me, is that it?" asked Duo, neutral. 

"No, never…" sighed Wufei, dejectedly. 

"Do you have a problem with me taking you, Wufei?" asked Duo, still carefully neutral. 

"I… I… I guess not…" stammered the black-haired teenager, red up to his hairline. "It's just that…"

"The rare times you imagined being with me, I was the one … playing the 'girl part'?"

"Yes," sighed the boy. "I realize, you know, that you're not a girl, I know you're male and as virile as me. I don't want to offend you… Damn, you're even more of a macho than Yuy sometimes, and that's saying something," he added with a little smile. "It's just that… I didn't think. At all."

Duo stared at him for a few minutes.

"You know Wufei, making love with a man is not the same as making love with a woman, not at all. Maybe you won't like."

"Won't like making love with you? Are you insane?"

"Dunno… I mean, I thought you were straight for so long, and usually I can spot a gay or a bi some fifty meters away… I know you love me, Wufei, I don't doubt you feelings. Maybe you love _me_, the… soul in me? … but me being a male is going to give you problems… ?"

Wufei chuckled. "Duo. I am not straight. I am not gay either, nor am I really bi, by the way. I love strength in people, moral and physical. And you're one of the strongest people I know, in both aspects. Don't be worried, physical desire won't be a problem. It was just that I stupidly reported on you the only schema of… coupling that I knew. I look forward to learning another one," he added in a whisper, leaning toward Duo and brushing his lips against his neck. 

Duo shivered, and closed his eyes, leaning against him. 

"Careful with that sort of pillow talk, Wu-love, I'm gonna decide that the moment has come," he joked, sliding an arm around his waist to press their fronts together.

They looked into each other's eyes for a few seconds, then, still with his eyes wide open, Duo leaned forward and brushed his lips against Wufei's. Once, then twice. Wufei groaned, his eyelids sliding half-closed, and his tongue slipped out to lick briefly at Duo's lower lip. 

Their mouths meshed together, warm, moist, their tongues met, danced, deepening the kiss as far as they could go. It went on and on, a never-ending moment of intimacy, of pleasure. They were still looking into each other's eyes, losing themselves. 

They separated, not at once, but slowly, going back to peck again and again at the other's lips, unwilling to cut it short. Duo's hands were lost in Wufei's hair, unbinding it slowly to plunge his fingers into the black mane, making the other boy sigh and press tighter against him.

"Damn. I know why you have long hair now, Duo," joked the Chinese boy.

"Hm-mm?"

"It's to encourage people to pet you," he smiled. 

Duo was still drooling over the magnificent way his boyfriend's face changed with that tender expression, when the raven-haired boy suddenly slid his hands downward and over his butt cheeks, caressing, making him bite back a surprised moan, before pinching it, disengaging and dashing off laughing.

"WUFEIII!!! COME BACK HERE AND FINISH WHAT YOU STARTED, DAMNIT!!!!"

"Payback's a bitch, isn't it?!" asked the Chinese boy gleefully, running from the braided pilot as fast as he could. 


	3. Chapter Three

****

Walking the Tightrope – Chapter 03

Author: Asuka Kureru (asukasama@ifrance.com**)**

Homepage: http://www.chez.com/oniryu/asuka/index.html

****

Series: Gundam Wing 

Warnings: Yaoi, romance, sap, love triangle, threesome, heavy lime to nearly full lemon, dunno yet; the POV is shifting between the boys. 

Beta-reader: My Ara-love ^________^

Couple (trio?) : 1+**2**+**5, 1**x**2**x**5**x**2**x**1 and diverse combinations ^__^ **

Disclaimer: They're sharing, why can't we do the same? ;_;

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wufei was the first to burst through the opening between the bushes, into the little house's yard. As such, he had exactly one second to catch, through the window, the forlorn, dreamy-sad expression Heero had on his face. Then the daydreaming boy's head snapped up, and he jumped out of his seat, startled. Wufei slowed down, surprised to have gotten such a reaction from someone who was usually much more aware and much faster to catch onto what was happening around him. Yuy had to have been deep in thoughts…

Then Duo ran out of the wood after him and jumped on his back, making him stumble forward and desperately try to catch his balance before he kissed the ground. When Wufei straightened back up, the curtain was balancing before the empty window and Heero was opening the back door and mock-glaring at them, one hand on his hips. 

"Are you coming in, or do you intend on camping in the yard?"

"Yeesh! We're coming mom!" Duo called back, tightening the hold his legs had on Wufei's waist. 

They entered the house, Duo still on Wufei's back and refusing to get off. He only relented when Wufei made as if he was going to fall back on a wall. 

"Meanie!" pouted Duo, acting childish only for the reason that he got to Wufei easier that way.

"I am not a horse… And if I hear the word stallion pass your lips you're sleeping in the tub."

Duo laughed out loud, eyeing the man in a way that showed that he was considering making a very lame remark on that. But Wufei scowled and raised a menacing hand on him, and so the chestnut-haired boy shrugged, and after having stuck out his tongue at him, Duo turned to Heero. 

"Hey, Heero, didja finish your report?"

"Yes," answered the Japanese boy, shrugging. It should have been obvious. If he hadn't he would have been working on it still. 

"Long time ago?"

"No. Ten minutes, maybe fifteen, I don't know," answered the Japanese, indifferent.

He was lying of course. He had been sitting at the window for at least one hour and a half. 

Wufei was staring at him, pensive, serious, slightly frowning. Heero just knew that he knew. He scowled slightly at him, asking him to stay silent. The raven-haired pilot frowned in response and shrugged imperceptibly, as if to say that it wasn't his problem. 

"So you weren't too bored then? Good!" said Duo, slinging an arm over his shoulders and kissing him on the cheek. 

He knew damn well that he was acting clingy, even more so than ever, especially with Heero. Damn, even after they had gotten together he hadn't kissed him as much and as often. But he hadn't found any other way to reassure the Japanese teen that he wasn't going to abandon him. Heero was altruist, but so insecure sometimes. 

Heero walked back to the living room and his laptop, his braided lover still leaning on him. Wufei followed, Heero having signaled to him with a nod. 

"No, I wasn't… By the way, Wufei, I'll need you to go over Trowa's report and tell me if your version of your last joined mission differs significantly. Oh, and Quatre says hello."

"Really? What's up, did he say?"

"He's in hiding, like us. I don't know where. A little boring I guess."

"… Bet it is. But then, it's a little dead at the moment," commented the chestnut-haired teenager.

They read Quatre's email, each smiling their version of an affectionate smile. He had one part for each of them, thoughtfully asking about their health and having a friendly comment for everyone. Wufei decided to type his answer in the same mail as Heero's, but Duo declined, saying that he preferred to answer later, because it would be a lengthy mail. Heero and Wufei shared a look. Duo didn't want them to read what he would be typing, which meant he was going to tell Quatre about the three of them. Bah, it didn't bother them, it was not as if Quatre would permit himself to judge them, and the man was their friend. And life was short, especially when you were fighting in a war. 

In the middle of these serious considerations, Duo's stomach suddenly growled, startling them all.

Heero smirked, and Wufei shook his head, appalled. The boy had wolfed down an innumerable amount of junk food during their outing. 

"You not hungry, guys?" asked the braided one sheepishly. 

"Not yet, but I could eat," answered Heero, who had barely eaten anything at noon and nothing at all since. 

"Guess since you're gonna be answering Quat's mail, I'm cooking tonight… Be afraid, be very afraid!!" he exclaimed, striking a pose. 

The boy disappeared into the kitchen, all too aware of the awkward silence that had fallen on the little room between them. It couldn't be wise to leave them alone together. But they were mature, responsible. It was not as if they would tear off each other's heads. No, that was not what made him wince; it was that they were always so unsure around each other, skittish nearly, afraid of offending, of being offended, of being the one to tip off the balance of that strange tightrope walkers act they were performing without any security net. 

Maybe it was not wise, but he could not always be between them. He could not, and he would not. It was not healthy for their relationship, for him to be the focal point like that. They needed to learn to communicate as Wufei and him had communicated on their date, as Heero and him had been for a long time now, to get past their fears and really talk about what was really important, deep down. And they would not do that as long as he was there, because they would always be paying attention to what he wanted to hear and what they wanted to say to him, not what they needed to say to and hear from each other. This relationship was so much more frail than any normal one, thrice as much. They couldn't take things in a normal way. They had to establish a basis whose solidity would withstand all trials. 

He felt bad for abandoning them together, really he did. But it was just necessary. 

He hoped Quatre would be able to give him some good advice on that… once he had passed the surprised state. Well, if was not as if the Arab would be disgusted, he knew Duo's feelings about the two Asian pilots and he had never said one thing. 

Well, yes, one thing only. 

__

'Taking all odds in account, the five of us will probably not have more than one year left to live. By all means, Duo, if you can find something good even in the middle of the war, go for it. You don't have anything to lose, and everything to gain, and we have sacrificed enough already…you deserve to be happy even for a short while. And even if you think you don't deserve it, don't you think the people you killed will count far more in Hell than the fact that you had your heart open wide enough to give it to two people that were even more lonely than yourself?'

He had pounced on Quatre after that sentence, so relieved, so happy, so embarrassed by the heart-to-heart talk and wanting to put an end to that girly stuff. 

It was not an absolution, not really. But knowing that the only people he cared about didn't disapprove of his abnormal love… It had been as good as one. And while the idea of his lovers dying was intolerable in his mind, he had envisioned his own already. Heero and Wufei could at least support each other in their grief, if ever Duo…

He shook his head. He didn't want to think about that. He was behaving as if their whole fate, their life and death, was depending on one little moment in the living room together. They were like every couple. They had a right to a certain level of mistakes before having to call it quits. It was not that important if he was not always with them. 

Whistling, the boy with the chestnut braid began to dig out the things he would need to make something vaguely edible for tonight. The gods knew it was something he needed to concentrate wholly on if he ever wanted to succeed. 

+

The two Asian teens glanced at each other. Heero was standing beside the table, a step behind Wufei who was sitting in front of his laptop. The black-eyed boy prepared to type his answer.

"…Wufei…?"

"Yes?" answered the Chinese boy, frowning faintly at the strange way his name had been said. He turned back and glanced at the teenager. 

"… Don't tell him… about…You know," muttered Heero, glancing at the window.

"I wasn't planning on it," answered the Chinese boy, haughty, annoyed that the other boy would believe that he was going to tattle, especially something like that. 

He saw that Heero was looking at the floor, barely a hint of incertitude behind his usual impassive expression. 

"I just don't want him to worry…" he muttered. 

"I will not tell him," repeated Wufei, this time more comprehensively. "I …understand."

Heero lifted his head and stared at him for a lengthy minute. 

"You did the same too, didn't you? Before you were with us," blurted the short-haired boy with a sudden certainty.

Wufei shrugged. It was embarrassing, admitting that he had been pining over Duo to the point where he had been waiting by the window, torturing himself with visions of the both of them laughing, hugging, kissing. Lost in their little world where there was only place for two. 

And now Heero felt the same way. Felt… excluded. Forgotten. 

Wufei felt a pang of pain at the thought. Because of him Yuy half believed that he was being replaced in Duo's heart. And the man was still not protesting against Wufei's presence in his lover's life, he could see that in his deep blue eyes. They were still accepting, not a touch of hostility toward Wufei in them. Just a small bit of annoyance, some wariness maybe. But no hostility. No rejection. Because Duo loved him, Wufei, and Heero just wanted Duo to be happy.

He felt a mix of admiration and shame, when he thought about it. And gratefulness, for the selfless gift he had bestowed upon the two longhaired boys. Admiration that he would be willing to go to such length, would be willing to let an occasion to his lover to be with someone he could, maybe, learn to love more than himself… not that Wufei thought that it would or even could happen, but it was still a possibility that the Japanese teenager had to have envisioned. Shame, because he didn't know if he could have done the same… No, he knew, now more than ever, that he wouldn't have done the same. Wufei would never had intervened between a committed couple, and Heero and Duo were that… But if he had even known beforehand that Yuy had also been interested in Duo and that Duo could chose him as well as the other Asian teen, he would have fought to be the one, would have tried with all his might to get chosen. But he was sure, just sure, that Heero would probably just have tested his commitment to Duo, and then let himself be erased from the picture, because, Wufei just felt it without knowing why, he believed that it would be better for Duo if he was not fought over…

…He could see now that it WAS selfless, and he had always known that Heero Yuy was the most selfless of all the Gundam Pilots, with the exception of Quatre maybe, because he was the only one to have nothing to gain in this war for himself or his people, and nothing to avenge, which had been Wufei's own reason to begin fighting. But it also was a hint, somewhat, that the Japanese pilot didn't really feel that he was someone that great to have a relationship with. That he felt that, between a relationship with Chang and a relationship with him, he would not be the better choice. He loved Duo and knew that Duo loved him, but… If Duo really, really wanted to leave, he would not try to hold him back. He would just let him leave, only making sure that Duo knew that he would be waiting for him.

Wufei felt shame. Was it love, knowing that he himself would fight tooth and nail to keep Duo, while Heero would be willing to set him free, or was it possessiveness? 

But on the other side, was it really only selfless love, or was it also lack of confidence in his own worth from Yuy?

Anyway, he really held the other Asian in high esteem. Very high esteem. The man gave another definition to the word honor. He didn't want to see him hurt if he could prevent it. 

"Did you… have fun, today?" asked Heero, trying hard to sound casual. He didn't want to come off as intrusive or as suspicious, just a friend wondering. 

Wufei felt awkward when he answered that all had gone fine. They fell silent, and Wufei typed his answer to Quatre, grateful for the distraction it gave him, then he got up to let Heero launch the program that would send it. The Japanese boy didn't sit down for that, just leaned over the chair to type some things then shut down the computer. When he turned away, he blinked at Wufei, surprised that the other hadn't gone yet to find Duo in the kitchen. 

"Look, Yuy, I had been meaning to talk about something with you."

"Yeah?"

Wufei's cheek had a slight blush on them, but he seemed serious and determined, so Heero decided not to comment on it. 

"You remember the… The Night?"

Heero snorted. Even just listening, you could know that there were quotations around that word. _'The'_ night.

"How could I forget…?" he mused, lifting an eyebrow sarcastically. 

"You remember our experiments, then," asked Wufei, more cutting than he had intended at first. 

Heero blinked, then felt his face go a little warm. He remembered, no problem about that. He nodded, slightly, a little embarrassed.

"We need to tell Duo about what happened. The kisses I mean. I understand why we didn't talk about it with him at first, because he could have read into it the wrong way…"

"The wrong way?" asked Heero, lifting a surprised eyebrow, wondering if he should feel pissed. They had been kissing, and it had been good. He didn't see which thing Duo could have understood wrong. 

"That we were into each other as much if not more than into him," answered the Chinese boy. "In that moment it wouldn't have been good at all if he had believed that… But still, now we should tell him. I don't feel good hiding it from him, even if it's not that important now. I don't want to hide anything from him. Imagine if he discovers it after a while. I don't know how he would react…"

"You're right," groaned Heero, wincing. "If we don't tell him he is going to think that we had a reason to hide it, and then…"

"It's agreed then?"

Heero nodded. Then he laughed, a little, tensely. 

"It's strange…"

"What is strange?"

"Do you remember how it felt, that night?"

Chang blushed bright red. 

Heero was blushing too. "That is exactly what I meant," he said casually, gesturing to Wufei's cheeks then his own. 

"What do you mean?" asked Wufei testily.

Unfazed, Heero stared him right in the eye. "It seems so strange now to think that we kissed that way… and even more than that, we enjoyed it. Now I can't even imagine being with you that way, but we did it already. It is very strange."

Wufei mumbled something unintelligible under his breath that sounded like a curse.

"I had been trying to forget," he remarked. "It is very embarrassing, now, you know."

Sadly for him, having his head lowered, he missed the sudden devilish gleam that passed in Heero's deep blue eyes, a bratty side of him that Duo had needed months to dig out, but that, now that it was unveiled, appeared quite often and without warning. Therefore, the poor Chinese pilot was totally unprepared to feel him lean forward, his mouth brushing against his ear. 

"What is so embarrassing to remember? My hard on, or yours?"

"Yuy!!!" exclaimed the shocked boy, jumping back, eyes wide. "Are you feeling well?" he asked suspiciously, trying to beat down the full blush covering his whole face and neck. 

"Sorry," said the boy, not looking very sorry at all. "But you have to admit, it's strange that we're not even thinking that way about each other again, when we had been so… well, you remember. Now I don't even understand how I even found the courage to get you in that bed with me, even less how we ended up kissing…" Heero shook his head, looking honestly astonished. 

"Maybe because you were set on seducing me into hooking up with the both of you, and I was too surprised to think about what we were really doing," answered Wufei with a snort, looking away to hide at least part of his blush. 

"But still… I wonder… Does it still…?"

Wufei was opening his mouth to ask what he was wondering when he looked at Yuy. And then he turned red… well, redder. 

"…You too?" he forced himself to ask. He had realized that he had been wondering if the way he had reacted to the boy had been a fluke. It still bothered him, to have had his body feel that way with someone other than Duo.

Their eyes met. They stared at each other, then Heero nodded and stepped closer. 

They were both headstrong and prone to take the lead, but with each other, it was not quite working. Kind of intimidating, neither knew why. Shyly, they approached each other. They had a few false starts before even the first contact, and for a while after that contact, neither did much. Heero began vaguely moving his lips, but he was so tense and bothered by what Wufei might think that he didn't do much and not that well, shaming himself even more.

"This isn't working," announced Wufei after a while. He looked away, intensely embarrassed. It had been very stupid. Now he was going to be embarrassed in Yuy's presence even more than before. 

Heero bit his lower lip thoughtfully. "You're right. I feel much too tense to really get into it, and we can't prove anything in one sense or the other if we jump apart as the slightest provocation."

"Sorry if the idea of kissing you makes me nervous," retorted Wufei, only half joking. "You're just not Duo…"

He stepped to the side to go to the kitchen, thinking that it was better they abort the experiment. It didn't seem to be going anywhere. 

"Hey.."

"Yes, Yu… Heero?"

He had to think intimate, in-ti-mate. The man was his lover's lover, apart from becoming his lover as well, they couldn't very well get more intimate than they were. He couldn't continue calling him by his family name. He had been doing so, and it was wrong, because he knew that it was his way of keeping his distance even when they were talking about important stuff. Heero. Not Yuy; Heero. 

"We could try to pretend that the other is Duo, you know… Just to see?"

Wufei frowned thoughtfully, and let his eyes slide half-closed. To imagine being kissing Duo. 

He lifted a hand to brush against the other's skin. Not quite the same feel, the same velvet, but with a little bit of imagination… 

Heero stepped closer, just close enough that their body-warmth mingled, and tentatively lifted a hand to Wufei's hip, barely pressing against it. He closed his eyes, chasing away a lock of raven hair, imagining the soft and pliant silk of Duo's hair instead of Wufei's straighter and slightly thicker hair, then leaned forward, pressing his lips against Wufei's softly. 

Soft was not going to work, he realized right on. In soft kisses it was an exchange, but he could not really pretend that Wufei was Duo in that case, because he knew Duo's exact way to respond to soft kisses and there was no way in Hell anyone could offer the same display. So he just went with the more insisting approach, pressing firmly against the other boy.

Duo… Being with Duo… 

Wufei was startled when Yuy's hand slid from his hip to his back, to firmly press him against his hard body. The Japanese's other hand slid from Chang's cheek to the back of his head, making him tilt it, and before Wufei could think about protesting, Heero had invaded his mouth and was exploring it, insistent, overwhelming, nearly passionate.

Ok, he was not doing that bad, but Wufei didn't appreciate being so easily dominated. Sliding both hands in Yuy's thick hair to interlace his fingers behind his skull, giving himself a way to maneuver the other boy's head, he kissed back as passionately, trying to push the inquisitive tongue back into its own mouth and to do a little bit of exploring as well. He gained a little bit because of the surprise, but then, Heero got over his surprise and fought back to regain the lost ground. 

There was no way either one of them could still imagine they were with Duo, but neither one seemed to care. 

Wufei moaned when Heero's fingers tangled in his hair, near to his skull, and pulled slightly. The Japanese boy tried to use the new angle to kiss Wufei deeper, but the Chinese one was not disposed to be so easily conquered and bit down on his tongue, not hard enough to cut, but enough to immobilize it quite well. Heero opened his eyes to look into black ebony depths, shining, laughing, and quite visibly making fun of him. He stared back, his hand pressing their bodies tighter together, and Wufei released his hold slightly, just a second, when he felt their bellies press together, just long enough for Heero to save his tongue and leave Wufei's mouth to begin to kiss a path down his jaw. The Chinese boy gave a strong yank to his own double fistful of hair to redirect the brown-haired teenager's face upward, and plastered his mouth against Heero's, his tongue going to run against the other boy's palate. Heero moaned into his mouth, half from pleasure and half because he wanted to laugh at Wufei's combativeness, and pushed him back to the wall, his palm running up and down along the black-haired boy's spine. The slight impact made them separate for a second, and they stared into each other's eyes for a short while. 

"It's strange, don't you think?" mused Wufei, sounding quite puzzled. His lips were swollen and a few strands of ebony hair fell into his face. 

"What?" asked Heero, not really listening to him, just looking at the way his lips, colored coral by the kissing, were moving with the words. 

"Us… like that. The…"

Without warning, Heero attacked his mouth again and they pushed against each other, nibbling, grinding. Their tongues danced against each other, slick with mixed saliva. They separated again shortly, this time to enjoy the hands burying into hair, symmetrically.

"…The passion… With Duo it is passionate too, but more like we're working together to have the most… pleasure, but when we kiss… You and me… it's like… hmmm… like a competition… To see which one … can give the other more…"

"You know, you're right," chuckled Heero, nibbling on Wufei's ear and blowing on it alternatively, "but…'Fei?"

"Hmmm?"

The blue-eyed boy smirked at him and licked the tip of his nose, provocatively. 

"Shut up and kiss me."

The Chinese boy gave him a ferocious glare and assaulted his lips with a renewed passion. He was going to make him BEG. 

+

Duo dried his hands on a towel and carefully surveyed what he had prepared. It looked good, and smelled great. For once, he was happy with himself about cooking something that wasn't breakfast. He threw the towel on the back of a chair and walked to the living room, where the others had been the last time he had seen them. 

"Guys? Dinner's rea…"

They were on the opposite side of the room, between the couch and a disturbed chair, Heero backed against the wall, his wrists pressed at head's height by Wufei's hands, closed tight around them. As for what Wufei was doing, Duo could only see black hair, but from the angle and the way Heero was panting and biting his lips, the Chinese boy was actually doing something interesting to his neck, or ear, maybe. And they were huddled up and rubbing against each other as if trying to get into the other's skin. 

"oh gods…"

Wufei whirled around, aghast, and Heero gasped as they heard him. As they saw him at the door, the black-haired man paled and the brown-haired one flushed violently. They looked like fish out of water. Duo coughed to cover the nervous laugh he felt bubbling up his throat. 

They seemed to think he was going to kick their asses. True, he was a little miffed at this. But to be entirely truthful, Duo's main problem was not jealousy of any sort, but the fact that he felt so turned on, it was going to hurt if it lasted any longer. If he had listened to himself, he would have jumped on them both and nailed them on the nearest available flat surface. But the guilty looks they were giving him were so horrified, and the way they were carefully not looking at each other more revealing than anything: they had not intended for that to happen between them. And they were suddenly remembering it.

"Kitchen. Now."

He did not have the voice to say anything more. 

Meekly, they obeyed, following him in silence and looking ready to try to fit into the first mouse hole they could find in the walls, at the slightest provocation.

They sat down at their places, still looking down. 

Wufei glanced at Duo, who was observing the both of them in an undecipherable way, opened his mouth to give an explanation, then thought better of it and closed it before lowering his head once again, hiding behind his hair. 

"So. Had fun?"

Heero winced, and Wufei's shoulders slumped. 

"Hey, guys, look at me."

It took some time, but they did it, eventually. Duo waited patiently for them to look at him before beginning to talk. 

"Mind telling me about it?"

"We were… testing, that's all…"

"Testing?" repeated Duo, incredulous. "That's quite lousy as far as explanations go, you know."

They winced. 

"It's my fault," Heero said suddenly, lifting his head to look at Duo in the eyes. "Before you came back from your mission, when we were talking about sharing you… Well, when we were perfecting some details… We talked about the fact that it would be awkward that one of us had to leave when the other wanted alone time with you, and we… Just to see if we… really had to. Leave I mean. Well… We tried to see if we could tolerate each other at least, maybe even become interested in each other in that way. More like, I convinced Wufei to try."

Wufei snorted, then disguised it as a nervous cough. Convinced? He had kissed him silly without any warnings.

"I see," Duo said noncommittally.

"And today, it was just like before, we… got talking about it. It's tense between us, we're not at ease with the other. And it's strange, because we were really close for a moment that night."

"So you checked to see if the closeness would come back."

"Yes…" sighed Heero, looking down once again. It sounded so stupid, said like that. 

"Hey, guys… I'm not angry. Really, I'm not. Miffed, maybe, that you didn't tell me that you were willing to experiment with each other, because I was sure that I would have to find a way to… have intimacy with one of you without making the other feel abandoned or jealous, but I'm not angry. Ok?"

They glanced at him, as if wanting to reassure themselves that he was being truthful.

"How could I be angry with you?" he said with a shaky laugh. "That's the damn most arousing display I've ever seen. I'm surprised I didn't make my pant seams burst with the speed I popped a boner."

He laughed at their blushing faces and spluttering.

"Just one thing, guys." 

"Yes?"

"If you ever, ever want to experiment again, TELL ME! I don't mean, ask me to participate, you have the right to want to try alone, the both of you… After all I do have you both for me alone. You have the right to ask me to share too. Ok? It's more fair like that. But tell me that you want to, if only so I don't get totally floored when I walk in on you. Whatcha think? New rule? You talk about it before deciding you want to try being intimate again, and you warn me?"

"… ok with me," agreed Heero.

Wufei nodded his assent. He wasn't sure if he would try "being intimate" with the other pilot again, not too soon anyway. Being caught by Duo had badly spooked him, especially the way the braided boy hadn't even shown any hints on his thoughts about the matter at first. He had been sure Duo was furious at them, so furious that he couldn't even utter more than two words. It had terrified him, to know that maybe they were both going to be kicked out of the braided pilot's life. 

"While we're talking about this… As for… threesomes. In bed I mean. I don't think I'm quite ready for that yet. I mean, I'm not even sure I want to have that kind of relationship with Yuy…no offense."

"None taken," answered Heero in a careful tone. 

"What I mean, is, yes, I can … react to him… but I am not the kind of man who jumps anyone he likes to watch."

"You mean, you watch me?" asked Heero, bewildered. 

Wufei glared to hide his sudden flush. "As if I had a choice. If you didn't show off so much with your spandex shorts…"

"Hey!"

"You do show off, if I don't have a choice in seeing it or not, I might as well enjoy it!" protested Wufei, in a totally un-Wufei-like display. 

"I do not show off!"

"Oh, and what do you call strutting around with spandex glued to your body from waist to thighs? Anyone can measure your butt crack, Yuy, and as for the package, I don't even want to talk about the way it's displaying it! It's even more provoking than being nude!"

Heero flushed violently. "Hey!"

Duo burst out laughing, his shoulders shaking violently as he was desperately trying to breathe. The two Asian boys looked at him, startled out of their argument. 

"Gawds…Sorry, guys, but you're getting so sidetracked here…"

Wufei coughed, surprised himself at having gone that far just to prove his point. "I just meant that I don't do casual sex. If there isn't at least some feelings behind it, I don't want to do anything."

Heero pensively considered his plate. So, Wufei didn't feel anything for him… apart from friendship? He felt… disappointed. That was it, disappointed. He didn't know why exactly, but that was what it felt like, somewhat.

A bronze-skinned hand touched his wrist, and he looked up.

"I don't mean that I don't … like you, Yuy, I do. But… it's enough to make out, I guess, you know… mess around a little, try… experiment… but I'm not sure if it's enough to go all the way. Do you see what I mean?"

Heero stared at his deep black eyes. They were staring back, earnestly trying to make him understand something… 

Wufei felt attracted to him, physically, but if they let themselves go with what their hormones and bodies told them, and just had sex, he would feel bad afterward, because it would have been just animal mating, not something expressing anything, not something worth anything. Heero didn't know if you had to be in love to make love, but at least you had to have feelings of a more tender nature than mere friendship, and that was the only thing between them as of yet, if even that. 

The Japanese boy nodded slowly, showing that he truly understood. 

"I never had a relationship of any sort before Duo, you know…" he muttered apologetically. 

"I know it, Yuy. Don't worry about that. You'll see, whatever happens between you and me, we'll make this thing work," said the Chinese boy in a low, intense voice. 

"Yeah…" agreed Duo in a soft voice. "We communicate at least, and that's the only thing that is really important. As long as we talk about things, we can't make mistakes. Well, we'll make some, it's unavoidable, but not important ones anyway, and nothing irreparable. And if we do make mistakes… we'll just talk about it until we fix it. Ok?"

"Yeah", answered Heero with a small smile. "Like us at the beginning…" 

"Exactly like that," Duo agreed, beaming. "Boy, did we get into arguments or what?"

"You had problems?" asked Wufei, surprised. They had seemed to be so perfectly in tune when, coming back from a mission, Duo had told him that Heero and him were together now and would it bother him? Of course he had said no, it didn't, but it was not entirely true. Not for the reason Duo had been asking though. But they had looked so happy… 

"We just had trouble telling each other what we really wanted, that's all… We learned to communicate well enough quite fast. We'll just have to do that again. Promise to talk when something's bothering you?"

"Promise," the other two boys said at the same time.

"I promise too. Anywayyyyz…"

"Yes?"

"You still need to pay me back for the stunt you pulled in the living room."

The two dark-haired boys blinked and glanced at each other.

"You gave me the shock of my life. And Wufei, you made out with Heero when I haven't even gotten into your pants yet. I want compensation."

"But…" spluttered the boy.

"No buts! You were nibbling at his neck and rubbing against him! And I only pawed you a little through your pants, and I am your official boyfriend ! I. Want. Compensation."

"Okay," agreed Wufei, sighing. "What do you want?"

"Hmm… You'll have to do something for me. I'll let you know when I know what I want. And Heero, the same goes for you. I didn't see you trying to get out of his clutches too hard…"

"… ok, ok… " sighed Heero to pacify the guy. 

"Hey, now that I think of it… What are you to me?" Wufei asked Heero, thinking of Duo's 'official boyfriend' statement.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, Duo's my boyfriend. You're Duo's lover. But you and me…? What do I call you? I can't just call you a friend either. Sally is a friend, and there's no way I'm sharing anyone with her!"

They snickered, then became serious once again. 

"…I just need a name, I guess," shrugged the black-haired boy. 

"… Partner?" 

"It's vague…"

"It's perfect for a still evolving relationship, then," answered the Japanese, ending the conversation by beginning to dig into his plate. "Damn. Another rule."

"Err, yes?" asked Duo, lifting a surprised eyebrow.

"We wait until AFTER dinner for our serious conversations."

"What?" 

"I hate eating cold."


	4. Chapter Four

****

Walking the Tightrope – Chapter 04

Author: Asuka Kureru (asukasama@ifrance.com**)**

Homepage: 

****

Series: Gundam Wing 

Warnings: Yaoi, romance, sap, love triangle, threesome, heavy lime to nearly full lemon, dunno yet; the POV is shifting between the boys. 

Couple (trio?) : 1+**2**+**5, 1**x**2**x**5**x**2**x**1 and diverse combinations ^__^ **

Disclaimer: They're sharing, why can't we do the same? ;_;

WARNING: I HAVE EDITED THIS CHAPTER FOR THE LEMONY (5x2) CONTENT. IF YOU WANT IT, GO TO www. sweetlysour. net (remove the spaces).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This morning, when Duo woke up, Heero had been away from the nest for a while already, if he believed the cold blankets. The half-awake boy turned around to snuggle Wufei instead… and only found a pillow. 

Grumbling, Duo sat up, rubbing at his eyes, and glared around. Nope, he was alone in the room. Disgruntled, the boy got up and walked, or more like stumbled, to the kitchen. Wufei was sitting there listening to the news on the radio. 

"Good morning, lazy ass."

"Fuck off Wu, 'm not in the mood," grunted the chestnut-haired teenager, dragging a chair away from the table and letting himself fall on it gracelessly. 

Chuckling, the Asian pilot poured a cup of coffee for him. It was wrenched out of his hands without any thanks or apology and then slurped down very noisily.

"Another," demanded the boy, giving his cup back. Wufei poured it obligingly, still laughing softly.

After a while, Duo began to regain his humanity, and looked a little more alert. 

"Where the hell is Heero? Why the hell wasn't he in bed when I woke up?"

"He was warned that there would be a communication from J, he had to take it from his Gundam, you know it's more secure. So he's going to stay there, until noon at least, and use the trip to verify that Wing is still in good working order. You know if he had to walk to there, it was better that he find a way to make it worthwhile…"

Duo made a face. "And you?"

Wufei shrugged. "He woke me up when he left. I have a meeting with someone from the Chinese resistance this morning though, so it's no big deal." 

"So you decided to leave me alone, too? What good is it having two boyfriends if I still wake up cold and alone?" growled the other pilot. 

Wufei couldn't help it. Duo looked so _indignant_… He began to snicker, uncontrollably.

"Hey!!" protested the boy.

"What do we look like, auto-warming comforters?"

"Bastard," grumbled Duo once again, not awake enough to answer more intelligently. 

He got up again for yet another cup of coffee, then, this time, sat down in Wufei's lap, snuggling. He was feeling much more amiable already. 

They cuddled for a little while, Duo slowly sipping at his extra-strong beverage and Wufei thoughtfully running a hand along his braid, slipping wild strands of hair back inside. 

"The wonders of promotion. First I was a comforter, now I am a chair," mused the Chinese boy, grinning slightly.

"Be happy that I have a use for you, boy," smirked Duo, getting up once again to put the cup into the dishwasher. 

He turned around and looked at his boyfriend. If Wufei was still there and not taking care of his duties, he probably had something to tell him. The braided boy lifted an eyebrow at him, waiting.

"Do you have something to do today?"

"Nope. Just finished a big mission, remember? I'm on vacation now." 

The Chinese boy nodded pensively. 

"Duo… I really think you should go spend time with Heero today. We just had a date, you and me, and… I know that between you and me it's still new, and believe me I'd love to spend all my free time with you, but I don't want him to feel neglected, you know? We are not going to make up for the lost time between us all at once, and if we even try, he is going to feel really abandoned."

"Damn, you're right…" admitted Duo with a grimace.

"One after the other is good for the moment, you know. I know it looks like we're taking turns playing with a toy, but if you only go out with me for a while, then only with him, one of us is going to feel like the other has gotten the better end of the deal, and, well…"

The braided boy let out a long sigh and rubbed at his head. Damn-it, it was too early for that couple-psychology thing. 

"Yeah, I see what you mean. One of you getting jealous is the last thing we all need just now." 

"I think that after a while, it will not be necessary to plan your private time that way, but for the moment, it would be better."

Duo began to laugh softly. "You're so logical in this… Hey, how come each of you is trying to hook me up with the other one?" he asked with a grin. "First Heero telling me to go on a date with you, and now you…"

"Only returning the favor," smirked Wufei. "He is being very considerate about this, the least I can do is being considerate too. Furthermore, I…"

He stared at the table for a while, his nails mechanically scratching at a pattern.

"I never thought that he could be… frail. So insecure. He's always so strong, never afraid of anything…"

Duo nodded, his face unusually serious. "Heero has a heart of glass," he said in a low, hushed voice. "It is why he hides it so well. He would not survive a blow there." 

Wufei frowned, ill at ease with such a subject. 

"Damn-it, I think I preferred it when I still believed that he was a tough and cold bastard of a soldier."

"Too late," chuckled Duo. "He's always trying so hard, you know. I think this is the only thing that he really fears, being hurt by someone he opened up to. Not being injured or even dying. Just being hurt in his heart. But he does it anyway. He doesn't trust easily, but once he does, it's entirely, and forever. And I… Damn. I love him so much for that… Anyway," he cut himself, rather abruptly, as if he couldn't bear any longer to talk about that subject, especially since his voice had a tendency to soften in a very unmanly way without his consent. "Anyway, as I was saying, too late, because now you've seen it, and you're gonna keep on seeing it." He was frowning at the Chinese boy, trying to impress into him how this subject was important and not to be laughed off.

Wufei chuckled softly. "I don't think I really mind that. It's just… It was so unexpected. Two weeks ago he was my greatest rival, and now we're sharing things about ourselves that we never talked about with anything else…" He shook his head, as if he was refusing to believe it. 

Sighing wistfully, Duo leaned against him and nestled his chin on Wufei's shoulder. 

"You getting soft on me, Wu-bear?"

The black-haired pilot mock-growled and shook his shoulder to push him away. 

"Not on you, no," the Chinese teen shot back, smirking. 

"So, tell me, honey, am I going to have to get jealous of Heero over you now?" asked the braided boy, his eyes gleaming maliciously, as he jumped to his feet. 

Wufei snorted disrespectfully. "Hardly. I'm beginning to understand him more, I never said I was falling for him."

"Too bad…"sighed the braided teenager, dancing around the room with excitement. "Think about all the kinky threesomes we could have!! All the possible combinations!!"

Wufei shot him a contemptuous glare. "You're a hormones-crazed pervert."

"Duh! I'm a teenager. Of course I'm hormones-crazed!" 

"Well, go get your hormones-crazy ass over to Yuy then. I have things to do, and at least that way he will be of use to me."

The blue-eyed boy got a speculative look in his eyes, and Wufei caught him glancing in the direction of the hangar. The Chinese teen groaned inwardly. Way to go, Wufei. The poor Japanese pilot would have no idea what hit him.

"Thanks, Wu-love," chirped Duo, leaning forward for a kiss. "It's a great idea, and I'll make sure we use it to its fullest! Don't expect us back before late afternoon, and I have a cell phone just in case a mobile suit falls on your head or Treize stops for tea or something like that, don't worry, later, bye-bye!!" And grabbing his wallet in passing, the braided menace ran outside. 

Wufei sighed. He wasn't sure if Duo had been thanking him for the idea of going outside, or for the idea of boinking the boy from L1 silly. He had a feeling it was not the former. 

+

Wufei had his meeting and then ate in town, knowing that he would not see the two boys at their house today anyway. But then, he didn't know what to do, so he came back. The house was empty, like he had known it would be. He took it upon himself to straighten the living room up a little. It was messy, especially since they had moved the mattresses down there. Some personal effects had followed, and since there were no drawers to put them in, they were mostly resting on chairs or on the table, or littered around on the floor when they were Duo's things. 

Once finished, he sat down on the bed-nest-thing, and then fell back on it, sighing. It smelled of the three of them. It was strange, Wufei nearly never used his sense of smell, but he could pick apart Duo's and Heero's easily. They smelled nothing alike. He wondered how he smelled to them, then, he shook himself and thought that he was being lazy and it was bad, he should be doing something productive instead of daydreaming in bed. 

It was a beautiful day outside. He was sure that around the house he could find something to do. He walked out on the grass, admiring the peaceful woods all around. He had been getting lazy lately with his training anyway…

The Chinese boy stretched his legs and arms, then his back, and after a little warm-up exercise to get his muscles to respond fast and well, let himself flow into the first kata he had ever learned.

+

A couple of hours later, Wufei was nudged out of his trance-like state by a change in the sounds around him. Being careful to keep his balance and the rhythm of the kata he was performing, he extended his senses out of his body, concentrating on being conscious of what they taught him, and not on letting all the information flow around him. 

It was late afternoon and the sky was tinting orange and pink on one side. Birds were twittering in the trees…

Ah. That was the difference. They had stopped on one side.

When one of the katas made him turn around, he glanced under his lashes at the side of the forest that was silent. 

They weren't hiding, really, just being very discreet and very careful of not alerting him of their arrival… damn them, they knew all the things that made him pay attention to his surroundings. 

Duo was leaning against Heero's side, one elbow on his shoulder and an arm across his belly. Heero was playing with the end of his braid, contemplatively turning it around between his fingers. They were observing him with an unnerving attention. 

He saw Duo grin suddenly, having apparently understood that they had been spotted. Casually, he asked Heero, as if Wufei couldn't hear: 

"Magnificent specimen of wildlife, isn't it? We should have these woods classed as a national park. The creatures nesting there are quite fetching…"

"Hmm… And in good health too. Look at the gloss of the pelt, and the healthy tone of the skin…" continued Heero, totally deadpan. 

Wufei nearly missed a step, and had to fight to keep a straight face and continue acting as if they weren't there. He kicked slowly in the air, careful to keep his balance while he was moving his foot in the air. The movement made him turn around so that his back was to them, more or less, and he knew from experience that the position made the muscles of the back stand out quite noticeably. He felt slightly embarrassed and had to force himself to keep a sufficient detachment so as not to accelerate the movement.

"And FIT. Wow."

"You're not supposed to be drooling over wildlife, you know."

Damn. He knew it. Duo was checking him out. He could feel it, a tingle between his shoulder blades. 

"Tell me you're not, and I'll believe you. Not."

"But I hide it better."

The childish "so there" was so audible in the curt answer that Wufei nearly chuckled out loud. The …date, or whatever it was that they had been doing, had done good for Heero, or so it seemed. He sounded more relaxed now than he had sounded in weeks. 

__

'Since when do I take notice of Yuy's state of relaxation between missions?… And while I'm at it, since when is YUY checking me out?!! Unless he's playing along with Duo…'

He couldn't help but shake his head to dispel the idea, and it made him tumble oh so slightly in the next step. Of course, offsetting his balance for the next movement. The third was too fast to compensate and he stopped there, preferring to make it look like he was stopping by choice, and not because he was falling flat on his face.

He straightened and looked at them, lifting a challenging eyebrow. Maxwell grinned back at him, and Yuy smirked, letting his eyes flicker down then up to his face again.

Wufei blinked and began to blush. Yuy really had been checking him out. And was still doing so. In front of him even, and without any shame. 

"Hello there, handsome stranger," chirped Duo, approaching him, a very visible bounce in his step. Heero followed, still looking at Wufei with an amused little smirk on his face. 

"Awww!!!" whined suddenly Duo, making a face. "Heeeeroooo…"

"What?" asked the pilot patiently, knowing that Duo was back into one of his childish acts and that it was best to just play along for now. 

"I wanna glomp Feifei and cuddle him and smooch him and pet him…"

"And?"

"I caaaaaaaan't…." sniffled Duo, over-dramatically. 

"Why?" sighed Heero.

"He's all sweatyyyy… It is very sexy to look at, all those muscles glistening, but I don't wanna hug him like that, eww…"

Heero glanced at Wufei. Then at Duo. Then at the yard between them and the house. 

"Mission accepted," he announced with an overdone seriousness, before stalking to the house. 

The two longhaired boys stared at his back, wondering what he was thinking about, than looked at each other and shrugged at the same time.

"So, I'm an exotic animal, then?" asked Wufei, detachedly examining his nails. 

"Oh yeah, and may I add that I love your mating rituals?" answered Duo with much enthusiasm, leering at him. The Chinese boy gave him a dirty glare. 

"Let's see if I have claws, would you?" Wufei answered back, extending a hand to catch him. 

"Naw! Don't touch me, you're all sweaty!!" the braided boy cried out, dancing out of reach. 

They began to run around the yard, Wufei trying lazily to catch Duo and Duo trying not to laugh so much that he couldn't run.

And then, Heero came back. 

Armed. 

+

A few minutes later, Wufei resurfaced from under the dirty surface of the small pond, spitting vile-tasting water. Duo was wiping his damp bangs from his face, glaring daggers at Heero who, standing on the bank a few feet away, was still laughing at them, the hose in hand. 

"May I know what the hell possessed you to attack me with the damn water hose?" asked Wufei in a haughty voice. 

Unimpressed, Heero smirked down at him and pushed his thumb on the hose's mouth menacingly. Duo cringed. 

"You asked me to rid Wufei of his sweat, didn't you?"

"By pushing him into a muddy, dirty pond after having traumatized him with freezing water from a damn high-pressure hose? And me? Were you supposed to chase me into the pond too?"

"Collateral damage."

"Argh!!!!" shouted the braided teen, grabbing a handful of mud and flinging it at Yuy. He dodged with ease, still looking superior, and began to drag the hose back to its support. Duo stared at his back, looking disgusted. 

"Hey, Fei?"

"Hmm?"

"Why the hell isn't HE wet?"

Wufei shrugged and climbed out of the pond, then turned around and silently offered his help. 

Duo grabbed Wufei's hand and began to climb the steep bank, but suddenly, he lost his footing and half-stumbled, half jumped aside, nearly dragging the Chinese boy back into the muddy waters head first. 

"Eww! I walked on a toad!!!"

"Gross," commented Heero, who was observing them from a safe distance. "Did you squash it?"

Duo made a disgusted face and jumped directly on the grass to avoid a repeat, using Wufei as a support.

"No, it just slid away from under my foot… Urgh."

Heero mock-sighed wistfully. "Too bad. Would have been one less to croak all night…"

"You prefer to have a toadless, lonely night rather than a toadgore-free boyfriend?" glared Duo.

"Frankly? You make almost as much noise as one, anyway."

"Fine. You can go hump one tonight. Me and Wu will sleep just fine without you." 

"I wish you pleasure," the Japanese answered dryly while turning around to walk to the kitchen's door. "You both stink like a muddy toad pond anyway."

"YUY!!!"

Duo shook a menacing fist in the direction of the brown-haired boy, but he didn't even look back and disappeared calmly into the kitchen. The clean kitchen that Duo had needed three hours to scour this morning. Damn, now they couldn't follow.

"We'll get him back later," Wufei consoled him, putting his hand on his shoulder. "… may I suggest a shower though?" he added, taking a whiff of Duo's clothes and wrinkling his nose. 

Duo glared at him.

"Et tu, fili!!"* 

"It hurts to admit it, but, he's right. We stink. And that's only going to get worse as we dry."

Duo made a face. 

"Ok, ok…"

They traveled reluctantly to the bathroom, trying to stay clear of the carpets.

"We need to get back at Heero, yanno," commented Duo, pushing the bathroom door open.

Wufei walked in after him, to see that the braided boy was already ridding himself of his shirt and flinging it into the laundry basket. 

"No, dear, _I _need to get back at Heero," said Wufei while turning around to get rid of his own shirt and socks. "You deserved what you got for pushing him to go after me. See it as poetic justice."

"Aww, you're so mean!"

"…never said I wouldn't accept your help for my own revenge, you know…" mused the Chinese boy. 

Duo laughed. 

Wufei turned around to put his shirt in the basket…

… and nearly swallowed his tongue. He had caught a flash of totally nude backside, only covered by damp tendrils of hair here and there. Duo had been walking into the shower stall, without any clothes on, his pale butt, a striking contrast against the more toned remainder of his skin, and very flashing through the dark gold locks that were tumbling from his half-undone braid to stick on the small of his back. 

Duo got the shower running and began to undo his braid, and Wufei could only stay where he was, unable to detach his eyes from the troubling blurred picture the stained glass offered. 

"Ah, shit, I've got mud everywhere! 'Fei, help?"

The black-haired boy nearly jumped, caught in the middle of his daydream. 

"Wufei?" called Duo, reaching to turn out the water. Wufei hurried to the stall door and half-opened it, careful not to peek inside. 

"Yes?"

"Gimme a hand here? I can't reach everywhere and each one of my hairs is coated by a layer of mud, it's disgusting…"

"… ok…" agreed the Asian boy in a low voice. His heart was beating in his throat and he couldn't seem to control the throbbing in his belly. 

"You've still got your pants on, idiot!"

Looking away, Wufei let his pants slide from his hips and flung them into the basket. He couldn't look at Duo; it was just impossible. His cheeks were warm, warmer even that the rest of his body, and he could feel his heartbeat nearly everywhere in himself, it was beating so hard. 

He jumped when two hands touched the waist of his boxers and tugged down. Duo was looking at him, his eyes dark and intense under his messy, wet bangs. 

"It's ok, Wufei," he whispered, tugging the boxers a little lower, slowly. 

"Duo, I…"

"Help me?" asked Duo, turning around to show him his hair, cascading down his back in snarled tangles.

Wufei swallowed nervously and before having the time to think about what he was doing, he took off his boxers and stepped into the stall. The hand he put on Duo's shoulder to tell him to give him some space, shot arcs of tingling warmth through his whole arm, which went to bury into his chest. 

He took hold of the showerhead and carefully directed it to the top of the mass of tangles, to see if the mere weight and soft push of the water could untangle some of it. It did, but not much. The mud was acting against the natural tendency of Duo's hair to just slide free. 

"Give me the shampoo," he instructed, proud to hear that his voice didn't tremble or sound overly breathy, but totally casual. 

Duo obeyed in silence, and Wufei began to work the shampoo into his hair, slowly, using its slippery feel to untangle most of the locks with his fingers. The long tendrils stayed stuck against his skin, around his fingers, up to his wrists, and he had to fight them, to smooth them back in place, with the mass of Duo's hair, where they promptly meshed with the rest and went to plaster themselves against the pale back, languidly slipping lower and lower over the mass until they were in place. 

Wufei was concentrating so much on his task, so as not to have an embarrassing reaction, that it wasn't until Duo put his hand against the wall in front of himself and sighed that he realized that the American's legs were oh-so-discreetly shaking. 

"Duo…?" he called in a voice whose huskiness surprised him.

The pale shoulders before him tensed briefly, then without turning toward him, Duo reached back to take the shower head from his hands, put it back into its support, then reached back once again to grab him. He caught his wrists, and gently tugged until Wufei's arms were circling him, snugly pressed against his wet skin. The Chinese's intake of breath was shaky-sounding at best, and he gasped silently when the boy pressed his back into his own chest. Shampoo bubbles were lazily sliding down both their skins, and the damp tendrils of hair plastered themselves against his torso, Medusa's serpents ensnaring a man in their embrace. 

"Duo…" the black-haired boy sighed, pressing his mouth to the other teen's shoulder, tasting the skin.

The American turned around in his embrace and circled his neck with his arms, pressing their fronts together. They both gasped when their bellies came into contact, then sighed against each other's mouths before kissing languidly, deeply.

Wufei's hair was escaping his ponytail's confines, slowly freeing itself to go caress his boyfriend's face. Laughing lightly, Duo chased the damp bangs from his nose and tucked them behind Wufei's ears, caressing their ridge in passing. The Chinese boy shivered and pressed his face into the hollow of his comrade's shoulder. 

Duo dug his fingers into black hair, massaging the skull below, descending toward the higher part of his nape, and Wufei arched against him uncontrollably, when the bolts of pleasure shot down to the small of his back. 

"What the…"

"Feels good, doesn't it?" chirped Duo, doing it again without any thought.

"Oh yes…" moaned the boy, slumping against him. Heero had done it too, but, maybe it was Duo, maybe it was the water, it hadn't quite had as much of an effect.

Duo laughed low in his throat, and Wufei nibbled at his earlobe to teach him to laugh at him. 

"Gods, Wu… Maybe we should stop that for the moment and wash ourselves, or we're gonna get a good splash of cold water just when we get around to it…"

"You're right," sighed the black-haired man, disengaging from the other's arms. 

He blushed like mad when, lowering his eyes a second, he caught sight of their arousal, pointing high toward each other's. Duo was as excited by this as he was. 

He had control of his physical need, repeated the boy, again and again, grabbing the soap and beginning to lather his arms and shoulders. He had control of his physical needs. He would not jump Duo. He had control of his physical needs. Jumping Duo was bad. He had…

"Wash my back?" asked the imp, turning around and winking saucily at him over his shoulder. 

He lifted his arms to lift the mass of hair off his back and let it fall over his other shoulder, baring his body from nape to heel, the position making his muscles shift under his pale skin. Wufei moaned out loud, half aroused, half appalled at the influence the little demon had on him. 

"Damn you," he growled, rubbing the soap against Duo's skin with energy. The chestnut-haired boy laughed. 

"I'll do yours, if you want, 'Fei-love…"

Choking on a moan, the Chinese teen pressed tight against his back and bit down on his neck, sliding his arms around to flatten his palms on the tease's nipples and caress them in short circular motions. Duo arched back into him, his buttocks clenching against Wufei's groin. 

"Don't call me that! Do you want to be washed or what?"

"Call you what?" whispered Duo. "Fei? Or love?"

One second later, Duo had been whirled around and was backed up against the solid wall of the shower stall, his lover huddled up against him, caressing his chest with one hand and his hip with the other, devouring his mouth as if he was trying to swallow him whole. 

++

++

Finally they were able to get up again, and rinsed themselves of their mixed essences and the soap their contacts had covered them with everywhere, a decidedly interesting way of washing, before walking out of the stall, exchanging deep looks of understanding and tender little smiles, a whole dialogue without any words. 

While Wufei was squeezing Duo's hair in a towel, Duo dried Wufei, patting down his body. They got into each other's way more than once, but it never lasted long enough to get awkward. There was a need to take care of the other, neither knew quite why. 

Finally, they were mostly dry. They stood facing each other, staring into each other's eyes, unwilling to leave behind this so intimate moment of sharing. Then Duo had an impish smile, breaking the atmosphere.

"Was good…"

"Oh yeah….."

"But next time, I'm in charge."

Wufei was surprised at the way his body reacted to this confident affirmation. If he hadn't had a climax not long ago, he would have probably reacted visibly. As it was, he still felt warmth coil up in his belly. God, he loved men. He loved strength. And Duo was one of the strongest people he knew, mentally and physically… And was promising to show him how much he was. So exciting. 

"You know what?" The brown-haired boy asked out of the blue.

"What?"

"We don't have any clean clothes with us. We're gonna have to run to our rooms naked."

"Oh gods! I hope Yuy's still in the kitchen," groaned Wufei, mortified at the idea of being caught strutting around in his birthday suit.

Duo snickered, amused by his lover's prudishness. It wasn't as if Heero had never seen Wufei naked. They had even made out, damn it.

"Here we go!!" he exclaimed, tugging at Wufei's wrist as he began running down the corridor. 

They were already in the stairway when they heard Yuy move around in the kitchen, calling them and asking what was happening.

"Nothing, honey!!!" Duo called laughingly. Wufei jumped forward and ran even faster, dragging Duo behind him. They thundered into Wufei's old room, and he slammed the door behind him, slumping against the wooden planks and sighing. 

"Damn, this is the most embarrassed I've ever felt since the time Meiran caught me cuddling my old plush dragon!"

Duo burst out laughing. Harrumphing at his lack of compassion, Wufei went to his bed to dig into his pack for clothes. 

He found himself caught, his arms pressed against his sides, blocked by the arms Duo had tightened around his hips, and yelped when the American lifted him up, kicking twice before he felt Duo stumble, and then going carefully unmoving. His lover's arms were strong around him, totally imprisoning him, and there was no way he could get free without seriously hurting him. 

"Duo! Let me go!"

"Nope, don't want to," laughed the boy. 

Wufei wriggled, and froze when he heard him moan. 

"Didn't we talk about letting me be in charge?" he whispered before flinging him on the bed. Wufei just had the time to turn around before he was pounced on and buried in the soft mattress by the weight of his lover's slim but strong body. 

"Again!? But, Duo…"

The chestnut-haired boy laughed, propping himself up on his forearms to look down at him, his drying hair falling down around them both, like a silky tent. 

"Duo, I can't!"

"Oh yes you can. Want me to show you?"

He began to travel down his chest, mapping diverse areas with his lips and tongue, making the black-haired boy shiver and bite back a moan.

There was a knock at the door.

"Hey, are you coming to eat, or do I throw your shares in the trashcan?"

They froze, blinking at each other. Duo grinned at Wufei, mouthing: "But I'm already eating…"

"Err… We're coming in a few minutes, just searching for clothes!!" called Wufei, praying for Yuy not to open the door.

"… Ok…"

He sighed, relieved, when he heard him walk back down the stairs… then gasped and nearly cried out when Duo caught his cock head in his mouth and began to leisurely suck, making little slurps, like an infant suckling at their mother's breast. 

"Maxwell…!"

"Hey, I wanna eat, and you said you'd come in a few minutes. I just wanna help you…"

"That was very lame as far as dirty jokes go, you kn…ooOOH!"

Duo chuckled, lapping at his shaft, cat-like.

"You were sayinmmh?" he asked while swallowing him again.

"St-top HUMMING around me, damn-it!!!"

"Uh-huh!"

"Duo!! hnnn…"

+

Heero was sitting at the kitchen table, pensively staring at the food he had gone to lengths as of yet unknown to prepare by himself, and playing with his napkin. He wasn't fooled one second; he knew what they were doing in Wufei's room. You didn't need to go to Harvard to understand that. And they had taken a shower together… knowing Duo and his love, no, need, for physical intimacy, it hadn't been only a shower either. 

He didn't know how he was supposed to feel, waiting for his lover and his lover's lover to show up and join him, knowing that they were making love just above his head. Anger at their lateness and lack of regard for him? Jealousy?

He didn't feel jealous, knowing that Wufei was experimenting, for the first time probably, the pleasures Duo's total love could bring, knowing that Duo was wholly devoting himself to the Chinese warrior. If anything, he was content for them. 

He just felt lonely. 

So damn lonely. 

+

The food was only lukewarm when he finally heard the stairs creaking under their feet, and their laughing voices whispering words he couldn't clearly make out to each other, but definitely intimate. He turned his head to look at the door, the biggest move he had made since he had sat there to wait, and quietly slipped out of his chair to go put their plates in the microwave, not saying a word. They were finishing the exchange they had begun in the stairs and he didn't really try to make sense of their words, letting them wash over him. They were here, in the room. 

He still felt lonely. 

__

'Damn it!! Enough with the self-pity!!' he mentally snarled. They were there, he wasn't alone anymore! Yes, they had had an intimate moment in which he hadn't even been thought about, he was sure, but it had been their right and he had known it would happen when he had proposed the arrangement. He hadn't thought about Wufei earlier, when he had been with Duo at the hangar. So why did he feel so glum now?

He took a deep breath and turned to face them. They were looking at each other with a tender look in their eyes, smiling. Intimate. 

As if he wasn't even in the fucking room. 

"Hey, thanks Heero! You didn't need to do that, it's our own fault if we eat cold…"

Heero looked at Duo, startled out of his thoughts. 

So, Duo had been taking notice of his actions, even when talking with Wufei… The braided boy was now smiling at him, half glad and half embarrassed. 

"Sorry we made you wait, love…" he muttered, leaning toward him. He wound his arms around Heero's shoulders and kissed him thoroughly, reacquainting his tongue with the Japanese's mouth's confines. Heero relaxed and caressed his back by reflex. 

"You shouldn't have waited for us," Wufei blurted out, startled, when he noticed that Heero's plate was untouched and as cold as theirs had been. 

The messy-haired boy shrugged, the action somewhat hindered by Duo's arms around him. 

The American pressed himself against his side, rubbing his cheek against his shoulder, and gave him a warm smile, as intimate as the one he had given Wufei. Heero felt a great deal of the loneliness disappear. 

Then Wufei's hand brushed against his other shoulder, and he turned his head to the other side. The Chinese boy was standing at his right, looking to the side, his cheeks tinted pink. 

"I am sorry. It was very inconsiderate of us and will not happen again." 

And before Heero could say that it was nothing to be so concerned about, Wufei reached out and caressed Heero's cheek, just barely brushing against him, his palm fitting snugly against the roundness there before falling away.

Heero stared, eyes wide, one of his hands slowly going up to brush against his cheek where Wufei had touched him. The black-haired boy didn't dare look at him at first, but visibly gathered his courage to look back and give an awkward little smile. 

Not knowing what to say, Heero just bowed in acknowledgement, his eyes softening involuntarily. 

"Hey, looks edible again now! Gimme your plate, Heero," Duo said while holding the other plates out for Wufei, acting as if he hadn't noticed, to avoid embarrassing Wufei or Heero any further. 

They traded plates and the three of them sat down at the table, talking a little while, waiting for Heero's plate to warm up, since the two longhaired boys didn't want to eat without him. It was casual, relaxed, normal. Warm. 

Definitely not lonely.

And if Wufei's fingers happened to be brushing against Heero's wrist the whole time they waited to eat, no one seemed to notice.

++++

* "Et tu, Fili": Latin, "you too, my son": Julius Caesar's words when he saw his adoptive son Brutus amongst his assassins.


	5. Chapter Five

****

Walking the Tightrope – Chapter 05

Author: Asuka Kureru (asukasama@ifrance.com**)**

Homepage: http://www.chez.com/oniryu/asuka/index.html

****

Series: Gundam Wing 

Beta-reader: My Ara-love *cuddlepurr*

Warnings: Yaoi, romance, sap, love triangle, threesome, heavy lime to nearly full lemon, dunno yet; the POV is shifting between the boys. 

Couple (trio?) : 1+**2**+**5, 1**x**2**x**5**x**2**x**1 and diverse combinations ^__^ **

Disclaimer: They're sharing, why can't we do the same? ;_;

Thank you Mikke for the help with that damn annoying bit. *cuddles*

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once again, the braided whirlwind had left the bed-nest in a hurry. Wufei groaned. It was too damn early… Trying to block out the light from the window Duo had opened before leaving the room, he pulled on the cover to nestle under it once again. 

Which produced quite a startling result. 

Heero moaned into his pillow, one of his hands gripping the cover to prevent Wufei from dragging it any farther, "Damn you, Wufei!!" he protested. 

The Chinese boy stared at him, not understanding. 

Then he lowered his eyes. And blushed bright red. 

Heero had been warm the night before, apparently. He had kicked down the cover, and had put one leg on the outside…only one. The cover Wufei had pulled on passed between his thighs. 

Apparently, from what Wufei could see of the bulge behind the cover, the Japanese boy happened to have morning wood. Oh well. 

"Bastard," hissed the brown-haired teen, lifting his face from the pillow long enough to deathglare at his comrade. 

His cheeks, and even his ears, were flushed a bright, pinkish red. A chuckle escaped Wufei's mouth, an automatic response to the flushed and bothered look on his partner's face. To be truthful he was very embarrassed to have, without knowing it, but still, teased the other boy… but… For once, he had the advantage on Yuy. He was not going to let it pass, was he?

"Have any interesting dreams last night, Yuy?" he asked in an ironic voice, glancing at his comrade's groin, then smirking.

Heero growled at him, still as flushed as before, baring his white teeth at him. His eyes were gleaming ferociously, and his tousled morning hair… The Chinese boy didn't show his reaction, but it was an act of pure will. Heero sounded so wild when he made that kind of noise… Primal. Bestial.

Bloody arousing. 

"Hell yes," growled Heero, his voice rumbling as if he was biting back a deep roar. "And how did you expect me not to have interesting dreams, as you put it, with the look you both had on your faces when you came back from your… shower?"

"What?!" exclaimed the black-haired boy, startled by the comeback. 

"I wonder if he washed you everywhere…" added Heero, his voice taking on a lower, dangerous, nearly purring tone. 

Wufei wondered what the hell he was doing. He was in a bed with Heero, Duo wasn't there anymore, he should have gotten up, but no, he stayed there and teased the boy about his morning erection, and enjoyed the tingling feeling the boy's aggressive reactions were giving him! Damn, but he was slipping… He was less and less able to restrain himself, to stop himself from being interested in the other Asian teenager…

Oh, shit. They had promised Duo they would tell him beforehand when they engaged in…

He didn't have the time to wonder why he thought that this was going to go farther than just some teasing, Heero was jumping on him, pinning him to the bed by his shoulders. 

His black eyes fierce, decided not to let the other teen have the upper hand, he fought back, or flirted or made-out back, whatever. 

They rolled on the bed, their hands and arms sliding against each other's skin in an effort to pin the other down and fend off his tries, but they always managed to escape any hold the other gained on them and fought again, scratching without quite meaning to, pushing, pulling, squeezing, biting… 

Heero howled when he felt Wufei's teeth clamp down on his shoulder, and his hold on the other's waist slid. One second later, the Chinese pilot had him on his back, Heero's wrists crossed above his head and immobilized by one of Wufei's hands, Wufei himself kneeling over him and putting all his weight in this hold. His other forearm was resting across Heero's throat, and his knees were squeezing the other's narrow hips, sitting too high on Heero's thighs to be kneed off.

"I win," breathed the Chinese teenager. 

Heero's breath caught in his throat. Ebony locks were falling all around his face and shoulders, caressing his skin, Wufei's bottomless black eyes staring right at his own, full of passion and love of the fight. 

He was caught, and well caught. He grunted, trying to dislodge the other boy even as he knew that by doing so, it was just to try to salvage his honor; that he was caught and knew it, but Wufei merely tightened his hold and smirked at him. What a bastard, who had given him the right to be so sexy with his superior, mocking smirk! Heero wiggled again, trying to find a way to free himself. 

A flash of something indefinable passed through the black eyes still staring at him, and their lids slid down halfway, slowly. The Chinese's lips parted a little, his tongue came to wet them, nearly too fast for Heero to see. 

Heero was transfixed. Escape? What for? 

Wufei's lower back bent without any conscious decision, making him arch above his captive's body, their bellies and groins pressing against each other's. They moaned together, low, nearly inaudible. 

Experimenting now that he had the other boy secured in his clutches, Wufei slightly changed the angle of his hips, pushed just a little, still staring into Heero's eyes. He smirked, satisfied, when he saw his pupils widen even more, swallowing his blue irises, giving him a cloudy gaze. Heero looked totally dazed. It was a damn good look on him. 

"Bastard…" he whispered, but there wasn't any force behind the insult. 

Wufei chuckled. 

Heero glared at him, his eyes full of fire anew, bared his teeth in a wordless challenge. He was prisoner, but he hadn't surrendered yet! Tensing in the other's hold, he tried to shake him off again. 

"You won't succeed, you know, I've got you…"

The Chinese boy used the arm on Heero's throat to force his head to stay unmoving, then bent and nibbled at his lips. The brown-haired boy glared and refused to open his mouth to him. Nonplussed, Wufei just nuzzled his cheek and began to kiss his jaw, slowly going to his ear. He grinned against the tanned skin when his captive's breath hitched, and began to suckle on his earlobe, biting gently when the boy tried to turn his head away. 

The Japanese boy's tenseness suddenly disappeared, and he arched back into Wufei, throwing his head back, offering his throat. All restrain flying away, the other boy began to devour the offered skin, licking, sucking, biting. As he was putting less weight on it, one of Heero's hands succeeded in escaping his hold, and the Chinese teen interlaced his fingers with Heero's other hand to prevent it from escaping too. 

Heero's free hand didn't push him back, though, but slid in his hair and guided his head lower, on the boy's clavicle. Wufei was happy to oblige, and without remorse gave the messy-haired boy a hickey that would last days. Heero moaned, or groaned, it was difficult to decide which, and raked his nails from Wufei's waist to his shoulders, making him shiver and rub against him, pressing their bodies together.

They were squeezing their interlaced hands hard enough to hurt, but it didn't seem important against the bursts of pleasure the kisses and bites and caresses gave them. 

Heero came first, with a surprised look in his eyes that Wufei would remember for a long time. His mouth half-opened under the shock, he grabbed Wufei's shoulders to steady himself and rode the waves, his left leg coming up automatically to wind around Wufei's thigh, pressing his groin to the other's in short, intense contractions. Thrown over the edge as much by the contact with Heero's most intimate parts than by his expression and the knowledge that HE was the source of such an expression, Wufei had to stifle his shout in the hollow between his shoulder and neck as he came after him. 

Spent, he let his body cover Heero's. They were both totally relaxed against each other, not a tense muscle anywhere. It was comfortable… 

"You're crushing me, 'Fei…" mumbled Heero, still idly caressing his shoulder and back. 

Hnn'ing in response, Wufei rolled on his right side, sliding down Heero's flank, letting his arm rest around the boy's torso and his face press against his neck. Heero, eyes closed, still flushed and damp with sweat, began to play with the long hair trailing down his shoulder, running his fingers to Wufei's scalp and beginning to rub it, by reflex. Wufei would have purred if he hadn't been so tired. 

"Can one of you explain to me why it is that each time I leave you two alone in this room, I find you getting all hot and sweaty with each other?!"

They jumped, sitting up with a leap. Duo was leaning on the little table near the door, both his fists solidly planted on it. He was glaring at them, but his red cheeks, the heavy way he breathed, and the damp patch on his boxers were all signs that his problem wasn't really anger. 

"Oh gods," moaned Wufei, mortified, hiding his face in Heero's shoulder once again. Even his neck was beginning to get scarlet. Heero was still gaping at their lover, too surprised to think about hiding. 

"So? Why do you only engage in sexual activities when I am not there? The least you could do is let me enjoy it, too!"

Heero snorted. 

"Because each time you're there, we only pay attention to you, baka!"

Duo wasn't thrown off-balance for more than a few seconds. "Ok, next time I'm letting you two alone just long enough to begin, then I come back and jump in the middle. Ok?"

Wufei's shoulders were shaking against Heero's side. The teen turned his head, but only saw black hair. 

"Wufei?" he called, shaking his own shoulder to make the Chinese move. 

"Seems like we're gonna get our Duo sandwich after all…" the Chinese boy whispered at him, eyes sparkling with mirth. 

Heero burst out laughing. 

"Hey, what's so funny?"

The two Asians looked at each other, then at their lover. 

"Private joke," they said at the same time. 

Duo pouted at them, but knowing his techniques, they were carefully NOT looking at him, so they weren't affected. Damn. Now he was the one to be the odd man out. He was lucky it didn't bother him like it bothered his two lovers. Shrugging, he walked out to the bathroom before coming back with a towel. He walked to the bed-nest, kneeling at the edge.

They were glancing at him and still blushing, but neither one was trying to get away. Good. It seemed like they weren't ashamed of being attracted to each other anymore… Not too much anyway… Finally beginning to see, at last, that they could like and want each other and not love Duo any less. Damn, but they had been thick-headed about that. 

Gods he loved them. 

"You've made a mess," he said in a soft, tender voice, wiping the mixed semen on Heero's belly with slow swipes that were more caresses than anything else. 

Heero's hand brushed against the long braid falling from his shoulder, and Duo and he kissed, slowly. 

Wufei looked without even thinking of letting them to their privacy. It seemed such a silly idea now, privacy between them. He was intimate with the two of them, his two lovers… His two lovers. Gods.

Heero could be considered his lover too now. Just like Duo.

"Wu-love? Are you ok? You look like you've seen a fish dance the macarena…"

"It's nothing," answered Shenlong's pilot, shaking his head to dispel the dizziness he felt. 

__

'I'm attracted to Yuy… Heero, too. Not as much as I am to Duo, but… Still enough to… To what? If Duo wasn't there… Well, if Duo wasn't there I wouldn't even have tried to see behind the ice walls he uses as protection, but… With the feelings I have now… Duo is the one I love, but…'

Too confused to continue his line of thoughts, he stopped trying to understand his strange, mixed-up feelings and got up, looking at the two other boys. They were sitting side by side, Duo's arm around Heero's shoulders and Heero's hand closed around the end of Duo's braid, turned toward each other, but still looking at him, their body languages still opened to him, if he wanted to take his place with the both of them to complete the circle. He smiled a strained little smile to acknowledge the invitation, but shook his head slightly and gave his hands to them, so that he could help them up. 

"Time to get moving, we have work to do," he reminded them. 

"Yeah, you have the time to engage in activities by early morning, but I don't," pouted Duo.

Heero glanced at him. 

"Ah, damn, Duo, I didn't even think about that. Do you need…" he asked, letting the end of the sentence trail into silence. 

"No, it's ok, I was just joking," grinned the boy. "You were so hot together that I didn't even realize what my hand was doing anyway," he added with a lewd smirk. 

"You're so crude," groaned Wufei, shaking his head. 

"You're so sexy… Whee! I just realized something!"

"What?"

"I have my own homemade porn shows now!!"

"Duo!!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wufei searched for an isolated place to meditate a little. He needed to think on this strange relationship, now more than ever. 

He hadn't had even one chance to stop and think about things before; everything had happened too fast, a whirlwind of revelations and new situations to adjust to, one on top of the other. He hadn't been able to just say "wait!" to give himself a chance to figure out what was going on. But he needed to, he needed to stop and think now, before it was too late...

It was like he had just woken up from a strange dream, the kind that only makes sense while you're dreaming. What the hell was he doing? He had been supposed to share Duo with Heero, not to... Not to... to share himself with Heero! He couldn't. He had not planned that...

At first, he was just trying to learn to tolerate Heero. He needed to, in order to share Duo with him during their most intimate moments. That was his intention, to learn to share Duo with Heero, but Duo hadn't been there at all this morning. Hadn't even entered his thoughts. His thoughts had all been about Heero.

Heero was not at all his usual self. Heero was acting nice for now, but even that was scaring Wufei. No one could change that totally in so little time... which meant that Heero hadn't changed. He was just putting on an act to make Wufei accept him, and the act would not last. As soon as Wufei let down his guard, he was sure that Heero would revert to his unfriendly, impatient, uncommunicative self.

Two weeks ago, for the chance of having Duo, Wufei had agreed to try and get along with his greatest rival. And now he was rolling around in a bed with a man that, up until two weeks ago, had been the epitome of cold fish and heartless killing machine. And not once, not even ONCE, had thoughts of Duo entered his mind. There was no way that his love could explain, even a little, the overwhelming passion he had felt.

He freaked out. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They had received a mission of demolition, a Mobile Doll factory, and since it was supposed to be a job for two and Duo had just finished a tiring mission, and needed to go to Howard's for a recap on the Sweepers' latest information and members, the scientists had decided that Wufei and Heero would go together, since they were already at the same location, Trowa and Quatre being nearly at the other end of the Earth. Duo tried to argue with his lovers that three was better than two, but sadly, transportation had only been arranged for two people. 

Duo had left not too long ago, and Wufei had immediately retreated to his room. He had seemed pensive about something, concerned even, and Heero was loathe to disturb him, but the mission didn't care for personal arrangements. 

He found it a little disturbing that Wufei would retreat to his bedroom… that he would still have a bedroom. Heero and Duo didn't use their own room under the roof anymore at all, but Wufei… It was as if he was preparing a safe place to hide in should this experiment fail. But it was kind of defeatist to have something like that all ready, and didn't bode well for the three of them. If Wufei felt that he needed to have a safe place… If he was ready to pull out, had one foot out of the door already…

Well, he had a right to privacy. It was not that now that they were a coupl…trio, he had to share it all with them. With his training, Heero didn't need a room to isolate himself, but that didn't mean Wufei didn't. 

But still, it disturbed him. The only thing he found reassuring was the lack of mattress. The Chinese boy couldn't sleep anywhere but with them, he thought, glancing around the room, before looking at Wufei who was kneeling by his chest of drawers and going through them. 

"Do you have everything you will need?" asked Heero, stopping on the threshold of Wufei's room. 

He winced when he saw the other boy's shoulders tense. The way Wufei's head carefully turned around wasn't reassuring.

"I am still able to prepare for a mission alone, Yuy," said the Chinese teen. 

Heero clenched his teeth. The tone had been cold, haughty, distant. And he had called him Yuy. 

"I was just verifying," he gritted out. 

"You don't trust me enough to do that?" asked Wufei in a controlled tone. Heero felt as if he had been sucker-punched.

"I never said that! I always verify…" he exclaimed in a slightly angry tone, wanting to tell him that it helped his worry to see it all, that it didn't mean that he didn't trust them… that it was just irrational, but it made him feel better…

"Well I don't need you to. Let's go," cut Wufei, getting up, his bag thrown over his shoulder. He left the room without even sparing a glance for the blue-eyed boy.

Heero stayed unmoving, standing in the doorway, still looking at the half-empty room, even when he heard Wufei's steps in the staircase. 

It had been too early. This morning had been too early. Wufei hadn't been ready to accept him. And now he was closing off, pushing Heero back all the way out. 

He had spoiled it. He had lost Wufei's barely burgeoning trust. 

"K'so!!"

His fist hit the wall hard, and he winced, but not from the outer pain. 

Well, if Wufei had shut him out, there was no need to stay open to him, just to get his heart trampled on. 

He felt a deep sorrow well up along with the walls rising in place, but it didn't show at all on his face, not even a hint. The soldier was back. He crushed his inner thoughts and desires, unneeded now. Now was the time to be professional. Now there was a mission. Missions didn't require feelings. 

His face utterly expressionless, he stalked down the stairs, caught his bag and took his place in the car. 

He didn't avoid Wufei's glance in the mirror, met it with the void he felt, uncaring. Wufei looked away, his face as frozen as Heero's, and began to drive away. 

+

__

'I hurt him' Wufei thought in the stony silence of the car. A tiny thought, barely heard over the noise of the mission parameters he was reviewing and the concentration on his driving. 

He mentally scoffed. _'I barely said anything to him. I've been meaner before. He never died or anything.'_

'We weren't lovers…'

''Lovers' is too big a word for participants in a humping session,' he thought back with force, viciously shutting up the little voice under a downpour of mission specs.

It was not as if he had been more snappy than usual. He was always like that. Always. If Yuy couldn't cope, he could leave him alone, and that was all.

__

'I don't care for him. I barely even like him. Who the hell does he think he is, checking on what I'm doing as if he was the only one not able to make mistakes? Did I ask to be supervised? I love Duo. I don't need Yuy. He just makes me react because he's hot. Doesn't mean I care. Doesn't.'

He drove all thoughts of his comrade and his love life out of his head. They were nearly there; time to get serious about the mission. 

+

For all the acknowledgement they gave each other en route to the enemy factory, they might as well have been walking alone. 

They didn't look at each other when they stopped at the edge of the cover, just at the limit before they could be seen. 

Heero didn't ask if Wufei remembered the coordinates and the time they were supposed to stay in, nor the margin they would have to get out before the explosions. 

Wufei didn't ask if Heero had spare detonators with him, nor if his escape route had an emergency backup.

They just shrugged, and went to work. 

+

The factory was built along a river, which meant that it was much longer than it was wide. They could have taken one side each and have met in the middle, but that didn't leave many options for escape from the explosions, that was why they proceeded in parallel.

They could catch glimpses of each other's progress when they darted in and out of the buildings and from between the crates, sometimes. The guards at the entry hadn't been much of a hindrance, and now, the visits to the laboratories and bureaus finished, they were planting bombs in the hangars. 

The Mobile Dolls here weren't complete, just parts waiting to be assembled. There were crates of parts everywhere, in a labyrinth that most probably only the workers knew how to navigate. Well, maybe not that bad, but it sure looked like it, thought Wufei. 

Nearly finished, a dozen bombs to plant, a hundred meters to go and they could get out and look at the fireworks. 

If he didn't get sighted by guards before that, he realized, jumping back. 

What the fuck were those guards doing, walking without a light on? He had barely seen them in time! He jumped back in silence to get out of the passage they were using…

… and realized that there was another group behind him, walking in the main alley. Shit! He was caught between the two! He glanced at the crates to see if he could climb, but the moon had decided that now was a good time to get out. If he tried that, he would be seen for sure…

… Yes, but if he didn't he would be caught for sure!

He got ready to jump…

There was a smashing of crates falling on the ground on the other side, and the men using his alley ran back to take another, more direct route to the origin of the sound, while the men in the main alley ran to block all escape routes, freeing the path for Wufei. He didn't lose time and jumped on top of a pile of wooden boxes bigger than him, hiding in the shadow of another, bigger pile. 

And then, he realized that the crates couldn't have fallen alone. He swore. Had Yuy bumped into one? He was not so clumsy usually…

… Oh gods. He had done that to give Wufei a way to escape. 

And now he was going to get caught. 

The Chinese boy ran on top of the crates, jumping in silence, and slid his blade across the last guard's throat, killing him without a sound to alert the other, then took care of the second in quite the same fashion. He jumped back behind a crate just as one of the guards looked back to glance at his comrades. 

"Shit. Kellers and Sanderson are down!!!" he shouted before Wufei could shut him up.

Ahead of them, the guards stopped trying to be silent and ran forward to close down on Heero. Gunshots exploded in the night. At the entry, a dog barked, and lights went on from place to place. 

Well, to hell with secrecy. The Chinese pilot jumped down from the pile he was on, gutting the man before he could shoot him, and took off running to where the artillery fire had come from.

He arrived on site just in time to see Heero caught between two enemy parties. There was a slapping sound, and the momentum of the bullet threw him on one knee, leaning against a wood panel. He began to slide against the wood, slowly, and for a very long second, Chang thought that he might be seriously wounded, maybe fatally. Abandoning the safety of their shelters now that the intruder had fallen, the men were closing in, trying to get a better angle to shoot him. 

Wufei threw a grenade at one of the groups, and jumped to the pile his comrade was leaning against.

"Your hand!!!"

He dragged the boy up, taking most of his weight on him, and, jumping in an alley just behind, began to run for the river. The grenade exploded and he heard a few screams, and piles of crates tumbled, blocking the path for the uninjured guards. 

"Can you climb?"

Heero nodded soberly, his teeth clenched hard.

The Chinese boy threw the end of a metal bar that had been lying in a puddle on the wire fence. After the shower of sparks, the hum of electricity disappearing was deafening. 

"Status?" asked Wufei at the foot of the fence, turning around to brace himself against it. He offered his hands for Yuy to prop himself up.

"Bruised ribs, scratches," said the boy, jumping up to balance precariously on top of the fence. Wufei followed, using the hand his comrade was giving him. They fell on the other side and began to run, Wufei once again making Heero lean on him. He looked much too wobbly on his legs to walk alone. 

"The bullet…"

"Kevlar shirt."

"Oh." Duh. He felt silly for having thought that Heero might have been killed by a bullet in the torso, now. 

They jumped down the riverbank, in the water, but didn't try to cross, just walked upstream, staying in the shadows of the high bank. It would throw the dogs off their trail. And soon, they would have other things to do besides following them. 

There was an explosion, then another, then, too close to really separate them, all the other bombs exploded more or less together. The light reflected on the river, casting deeper shadows on them. Earlier than what had been decided. Someone must have tried to defuse one.

"I hit my head," Heero informed Wufei after a few minutes, when the sound of explosions diminished and was replaced by the dull roar of a major fire.

Wufei gritted his teeth. If Heero took the pain of telling him about a bump in the head, then it was serious enough to get him concerned. 

"Ok. I don't need to tell you not to fall asleep."

"With my feet in ice-cold water I don't think it will happen," Heero informed him idly. 

He seemed to realize that he had been too chatty, had made a kind of joke, and closed off once again. 

Wufei clenched his teeth. 

Now that the adrenaline rush was going down, the "battle-mode" wasn't the dominant mode of thoughts anymore. 

Heero had nearly gotten himself killed. To save him. And it was only now that his mind let him hear the violent denial it had screamed when he had heard the first gunshot. When he had seen Heero fall. When he had thought that he could be injured, he could have just been killed… What had the moron been thinking, attracting the attention of the guards to himself like that?!

He could have lost him. He could have lost him, thinking that Wufei hated him… and it was not true. He… Kinda liked him, in fact… Even if he pissed him off so much sometimes that Wufei wanted to strangle him, he…

…

… _He_ could have lost him? Not, _Duo_ could have lost him? _HE_? 

Oh, crap. 

In the silence of his mind, the little voice from before was clearly heard. 

__

'It would hurt me to lose him. It would hurt me, and not because of Duo. Just because of him. Just because of me.'

This time, the voice of denial didn't find anything to answer. 

+

Finally they arrived to the hidden car they would use for the return trip. The one they had taken for coming here had been rigged to explode with the bombs in the factory, in case someone had discovered it during their trip. Abandoning Heero against a tree, for the boy was not yet able to keep his balance alone, Wufei went to drag the camouflage net away from the car. He opened the door to the backseat wide. 

There was a basket on the passenger seat, and Wufei blinked. The person who had put the car here for them was very thoughtful. Too bad he would probably never be able to say thank you for the gesture, the terrorist cells never having direct contact and anonymity being the number one rule amongst them. There were things to eat, a first aid pack, and a cover. He took the cover and spread it on the backseat, then got out to fetch Heero. 

The Japanese boy was leaning against the tree with most of his weight, an arm around it, his cheek pressed against the bark as if seeking the roughness just to stay awake, and his eyes were closed in weariness. It was too dark to judge of the pallor of his skin, but he wouldn't look well either way. 

"Heero?"

The boy opened his eyes slowly and glanced at him, expressionless. Wufei winced. He was still giving him the ice-prince treatment, but the Chinese boy had to admit that it was well-deserved. He had been so moody with him before, and without any warning. There wasn't any excuse, because Duo had told him, and he knew, that Heero had discarded his shields for him… but he just hadn't thought about that. He hadn't thought that the Japanese boy had given him access, and so, that his usually thick hide wouldn't protect him against verbal abuse.

It had always been Wufei's most despicable quirk, in Wufei's own opinion, the way he would forget about people's emotions and lash out when he was feeling out of balance, to forget to consider the repercussions when he delivered a scathing reply right in the middle of someone's weakness. It was what had made the young boys in his clan leave him alone to his books, what had made a love-hate relationship of his marriage with the only person he respected at the time. It was something he had never been able to prevent, and something he had always been ashamed of, when he was calm enough to consider other people's feelings. He had a very sharp tongue, and too quick for him to really control. But that was not an excuse; he just should have tried harder. 

Wufei offered his shoulder in silence, too ashamed to look at him, and helped him to the backseat. He sat the boy down on the edge of the seat, then dragged the first-aid kit closer to him. He would make his apologies later, for now he had to take care of his comrade before they departed from the area. Once on the road, Heero would have to take care of himself and it was not something the Chinese boy really wanted.

"Ok, look at me," he said in a professional voice. "I'm going to look at your eyes." 

When Heero turned his eyes to him, he lighted the flashlight in his face, judging the way his pupils were constricting. Heero winced imperceptibly, but didn't turn his watering eyes away. 

The pupils contracted to pinpoints at the same time. There wasn't one to go slower, or not constricting at all. It was a good omen. 

"Dizziness?"

"A little."

"What else? Upset stomach?"

He just shook his head no, his eyes fixed on something far away over Wufei's shoulder. Still didn't want to look at him. Ok, Wufei could work with that.

Didn't even hurt. 

"Do you like this shirt very much?" asked the Chinese boy, lifting the edge of said clothes. "Because I don't want you to lift your arms if you have a cracked rib," he added, showing him his knife. 

"Go ahead," said Heero, still indifferent. 

Wufei cut the shirt off, then unhooked the kevlar shirt under the cotton one and made it slide off Heero's arms. The boy didn't react, letting Wufei undress him as lifelessly as if he was a doll. It was slightly disturbing, to have him so pliant, when usually he was so stubborn.

Especially after this morning...

The skin was split and there was already a hell of a bruise all along Heero's left ribcage, but when he passed his hand on it, pushing slightly, he didn't feel any of the bones give or even move in a suspicious way. Heero had his teeth clenched hard, and Wufei could see a little muscle in his jaw jumping wildly, but the blue-eyed boy didn't protest the pressure on his hurt side at all. Sorry to have hurt him while searching for a broken bone, Wufei changed his clinical touch into a caress, lightly brushing against Heero's side before letting his hand fall on the boy's knee.

"Still dizzy?" he asked in a low voice.

Heero was staring at him, looking slightly puzzled. But then he shrugged and his eyes became blank once again. 

"A little."

"Sleepy?"

"No."

"You should lay down on the backseat anyway, to rest your ribs."

Heero shrugged, glancing back at the seat. His bangs hid his eyes for a few seconds, caressing his cheekbones. 

"Wait, let me see your head," asked the Chinese boy impulsively.

Kneeling up on the edge of the doorway, he hooked his hands behind Heero's neck and made him bend forward, until the wildest strands of his hair were tickling the black-eyed boy's collarbone. The raven-haired pilot took in a silent, deep intake of air when he felt Heero's warm breath insinuate itself between his tanktop and his skin, and slid his hands upward in the boy's hair. 

He didn't ask where Heero had been hit, just explored the wild mop of hair with the pads of his fingers, softly, barely pressing on the skull, enjoying the light tickles of the rebellious bangs against his palms and wrists. 

He found the damp, bumpy place, and grazed a finger over the already closed scratch. Heero sighed silently, discretely, and Wufei only knew because of the longer brush of air against his skin. Slowly, he transformed his already caressing exploration in a massage, rubbing at his temples and his fingertips drawing small circles against the boy's nape. Heero didn't move for the longest time, tense and making himself as distant as he could while being in his arms, but then, just like that, as if losing his resolve to keep up the icy demeanor under the warmth of Wufei's touch, he suddenly relaxed and leaned his forehead against the other boy's torso. 

Smiling in Heero's hair, Wufei slid a hand down his nape and on the first bumps of his vertebras, idly following on his light massage. It didn't feel like touching a doll anymore, and it was great, because it meant that Heero was willing to let him try to make amends for his earlier behavior. 

"Now lay down, we need to get going," advised Wufei in a whisper.

He guided the other boy down so that he wouldn't put strain on his ribs, one arm around his shoulders not to let him fall back too brusquely and one arm hooked over the back of the seat to prevent himself from falling over the short-haired boy. Heero crawled back a little so that his legs wouldn't hang out of the car from mid-thighs, his eyes hidden by his dark lashes. Wufei felt unsure of what was going on in his mind; Heero had let him touch him, but he was still not looking at him. That could mean that... 

Then, he looked up at Wufei, who was still leaning over him.

Just looked. Just like that.

And Wufei was kissing Heero, and he was kissing back. And it was slow, and tender, and so sweet, saying so many things they couldn't say out loud, Wufei's shame at having been so cruel, Heero's hurt feelings, Wufei's apologies, Heero's silent acceptance. 

But the Chinese boy had to make sure that Heero knew that he was sorry, he had to say it… he opened his mouth.

"Heero…"

A finger across his still tingling lips. 

"Shh. I know."

Heero's hand brushed against his cheek, light as a feather, the caress of rough skin on his face making him shiver. Such a contrast, hard hands, soft gestures. Heero all the way. 

"Now drive. Duo will be worried."

Wordlessly, absolution, forgiveness, just like that, no questions, no conditions.

Wufei nodded silently, then crawled out of the backseat, closed the door once Heero had bent his legs to have them inside, and got into the front. Revving the motors, he glanced at Heero, who blinked slowly, tiredly at him, then began to drive away.


	6. Chapter Six

****

Walking the Tightrope – Chapter 06

Author: Asuka Kureru **asukasama@ifrance.com**

Homepage: **http://www.chez.com/oniryu/asuka/index.html**

****

Series: Gundam Wing 

Beta-reader: Christy and Mikkeneko whee!! 

Warnings: Yaoi, romance, sap, love triangle, threesome, heavy lime to nearly full lemon, dunno yet; the POV is shifting between the boys. 

Couple trio? : 1+2+5, 1x2x5x2x1 and diverse combinations ^__^ 

Disclaimer: They're sharing, why can't we do the same? ;_;

The Footsie Episode is All Ponderosa's Fault. *nodnod* She didn't have to write such a well-done footsie scene in "That Which is Not His". So there. You see! It's all her fault I've been obsessed with that since then! Yes it is. 

Thanks to ChibiGaki and Mikkeneko for the help with the movie ^__^

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Duo saw the car drive down the path and park in front of the little house, it was dawn already. He jumped up, letting the covers he had been nestled in fall on the steps in front of the door without a thought, and ran to the vehicle, his initial relief already fading. He didn't see Heero in the car. 

He got to the car just as Wufei was stepping outside. The Chinese boy glanced up at him and put his finger across his lips to shush him.

"Heero's sleeping in the backseat."

"What happened?" Duo asked, still worried but not frantic anymore. He was relieved by the fact that Wufei didn't seem overly concerned, but bothered by the fact that Heero would be sleeping the mission off. It didn't compute. Heero was usually the last to go to sleep, he couldn't _not_ be vigilant. To go to sleep in an unsafe place was against his habits.

"He took a hit to the head and some bruising to his ribs…" Wufei informed him quietly. "No concussion, I checked, so he laid down to rest his ribs. He fell asleep after one or two hours on the road."

Duo nodded, absorbing the information. A corner of his brain noted the strange way Wufei was talking about the Wing pilot, the unusual little something in his voice, but his concern for the Japanese boy was too insistent to worry about it just now. He'd analyze things later. For now, Heero had been hurt. Ok, not much compared to what he could take, but knowing that his lover could take serious injuries well didn't mean that Duo didn't care when it did happen. 

He opened the door to the backseat as quietly as he could. Heero was on his side, against the back of the seat, his arms tucked close to his body, his legs bent up, and half covered by the cover he was laying on; it made him look small and vulnerable. It was frightening. 

"Heero?" Duo whispered, at the same time he saw the boy's eyelids flutter. 

Heero opened an eye and glanced at him. Duo felt relieved. He looked sleepy and tired, but his irises didn't have that glazed, not-totally-there look they had when he was in severe pain or totally out of it. 

"You're home, love. How's the ribs?"

Heero sat up, wincing discreetly. 

"Still sore," he grunted while pushing himself out of the vehicle to sit with his feet outside. He had to lean on the front seat for a second; he had gotten up too fast and was now slightly dizzy. Heero berated himself when he saw Duo's concerned face. The boy was worried, he should have hid his little troubles better than that…

"Oh, no, you don't, Yuy," Duo growled when he saw the messy-haired boy's face go carefully neutral. "Don't hide how you're feeling, I'd rather have some warning before I have to pick you up from the floor, ok?"

Heero sighed and gave a rueful, barely-there smile. Smiling down at him, Duo brushed his hair out of his face softly, tenderly. 

"Hey, Wu?" Duo called, intending on asking for help. 

The Chinese boy had been waiting out of the car, a few feet away. Duo felt guilty that he had not even asked if he had been injured too, even if it was obvious that Heero's bruised ribs was the most serious thing between the both of them or Wufei wouldn't have been driving. 

"Yes?" prompted the boy, looking toward them.

"You ok, Wufei?"

"Yes," answered the black-haired boy curtly, shrugging, as if dismissing the notion that he could have not been. 

"Good. Then, could you get the medical supplies ready in the living room? I'm going to take Heero there."

"I can walk," the brown-haired boy said testily.

"I don't give a rat's ass if you _can_ walk, you're hurt so I'm _not_ letting you. That's all. Deal with it."

"Duo, I can…" the Japanese boy tried to protest. 

"I said I knew you could walk. I said I wanted to help you. You don't like me carrying you? Or do you think I'm too weak for that?" the braided teen asked, firing his questions too fast for Heero to answer. 

"You're going to _carry_ me?!"

"I am. Wanna make something out of it? You afraid that I'll drop you? You think I'm too weak to bear your weight, is that it?"

"No, Duo, I know you can lift my weight and more, but…"

Duo grinned. Heero understood that he'd been had. 

"Then there is no problem. C'mere."

With a lengthy sigh, Heero slid to the edge of the seat and let Duo carefully embrace him. 

"Arms around my neck, love."

Heero complied in silence, and felt Duo's arms tighten and press him against his lover's torso. Obediently, he let his legs be guided around Duo's hips, and crossed his ankles over his butt. Duo's arms were tight around his hips, not putting any pressure on his ribs, and preventing him from touching the ground. With a grunt, the braided boy straightened up, made sure his hold on the short haired boy was secure, then began to walk back to the house. 

Heero snorted. He had to admit that it felt kind of nice, being carried by Duo, his strong arms around him, but still, he was not at all used to being so much in someone else's power. Duo could take him anywhere, put him anywhere, could just throw him down and hurt him, or keep him prisoner… And he couldn't even see where they were going. Damnit. Ok, he knew that he could trust Duo, but still, he had absolutely no measure of control over what was happening to him while he was being moved around like this.

But this was Duo. Sighing, he let the tension flow from his muscles and tried to get comfortable for the short trip to the living room.

He had to admit that being helpless was kind of …interesting. Usually he was the one to carry Duo around, to use his strength ; he forgot sometimes that Duo, too, was very strong for a teenager, because Duo usually didn't use it on him. Heero did, sometimes, never hurting him but physically restraining him or blocking him, even manhandling him sometimes. Roles reversal… hmm. 

Must test that at a later date. For now he was too tired to be horny. 

He chuckled. It was all Duo's influence, that, to think about sex when there were other things to attend to, even when he wasn't in the mood. But he no longer needed hormones to justify his attraction to Deathscythe's deadly and fiery master. It was Duo, and it was Duo with him, and that was enough justification for that sort of thoughts. Anytime, anywhere, it didn't matter. 

He pressed a little kiss to the base of Duo's neck, and after a nearly imperceptible faltering in the braided boy's steps, felt his arms tighten minutely around him in answer.

Gently, the braided boy sat him down on a chair, beside the living room table. Wufei was busying himself with getting the medical supplies sorted out. He glanced up at Heero, then lowered his eyes again on the gauze he was unwrapping, guilt written all over his face. Heero suddenly felt like swearing. 

"Duo?"

"Hmm?"

"If you don't want me to move, then get me a glass of water," he grunted with just a touch of grouchiness, hoping that Duo wouldn't question the errand's justification. But Duo gave him a puzzled glance before leaving, and Heero knew that he had failed at hiding the fact that he wanted the braided boy to leave for a short while more than he wanted water.

"Wufei," Heero whispered. 

"Hmm?" The boy didn't even look up from his task, just lifted an eyebrow to indicate that he was listening. 

"Look at me, you thick-headed moron," Heero hissed, startling Wufei into staring at him. He could hear the hiss of the tap of water in the kitchen. There wasn't much time left.

"Not your fault I was hurt, and the rest never happened as far as I'm concerned. So stop looking like someone skinned your kitten."

Wufei opened his mouth to answer just as Duo was coming back from the kitchen. He closed it with a nearly audible snap, and lowered his eyes again. 

"Ok, guys, want to tell me what happened?" Duo asked.

"It's over, Duo, it's nothing," Heero said.

"I'd rather not for now," Wufei mumbled at exactly the same time.

Duo's eyes went from one to the other, but he chose to not question them just then and to take care of Heero first. 

Taking hold of the cream for bruises that Wufei was giving him, he began to massage it into Heero's side, in silence, puzzling over his lovers' behavior. He noted that Wufei hadn't offered to do it himself. Afraid to be pushed away by Heero? Heero himself was glaring at Wufei, and Wufei was looking at the table, busying himself with small things not to look too much like he was avoiding his eyes. 

"Going to bandage your ribs, 'Ro. Wu, help me to keep his arms high, I don't think he should contract those muscles just now."

Glaring, Heero reached out, beginning to lift his arms. Before he could pull on a muscle, Wufei took hold of his elbow and walked behind his chair to be able to hold it without getting in Duo's way. The braided boy began to bandage the boy's torso, making sure that the band was tight enough to maintain the ribs if they decided that they were broken all the way, but not so tight that it didn't let him breathe comfortably.

He had to change places with Wufei to tuck the ends of the cloth at Heero's back. Wufei stepped in front of Heero, still clasping his elbows, still looking away. Duo gave them a worried glance before busying himself with the bandage. 

A yelp from Wufei made him jump and stare, puzzled. 

"Are you finished already, Duo?" Heero asked in a neutral tone.

"Err, nope, not yet," the braided boy answered, kneeling to access he area he was working on more easily.

Out of Duo's line of sight, Heero slid his knee higher between Wufei's thighs, his face as unexpressive as ever, his fingers tightening on the Chinese boy's biceps to prevent him from stepping out of reach. Wufei's face was turning a pretty scarlet. 

"Something the matter, Wufei?" asked the Japanese teen in a detached voice.

Wufei's eyes were bulging out of his head. Heero's knee was nearly up to his crotch now. He squeezed his thighs together to prevent it from going higher, totally embarrassed. 

Heero's knee fell just as Duo was putting the finishing touch to the bandage and standing up, and when the braided boy stepped around the chair to face his short-haired lover, the messy-haired boy's position was totally innocent once again. 

"No, nothing," Wufei stammered. He felt so totally out of balance, it wasn't even funny. Who knew Yuy could be that sort of …minx? He let Heero's elbows go in a hurry.

"I'm going in the kitchen, if you don't need me anymore…"

"You hungry Wu? I made something already," the braided boy said. "Not as if I had something else to do while you were away… Want something, Heero?" he asked, walking past Wufei to the kitchen. 

"Just a sandwich if you have that, Duo," the short haired boy answered. 

"I have it! Wu, sit down, I'm taking the food to you in a second!"

The Chinese boy sat down gingerly, eyeing Heero in a suspicious way, in case the boy decided to jump on him any second and… what? ravage him? He blushed and bit his lower lip, flustered.

Duo came back with the food and they began to eat, the braided boy wolfing down twice as much food as the two who had been on the mission. He hadn't eaten anything since the second they had left, and with his fast metabolism, that wasn't something he should do. 

Wufei kept glancing at Heero all along the meal, worried that he was going to do something outrageous again, but the boy didn't even acknowledge his presence or Duo's, just ate, his face serious and inexpressive. 

Until the moment Wufei took his glass of water and began to drink.

And then, there was a sock-covered foot on his crotch, pressed snugly against him. The water came back up through his nose. His coughing fit lasted for at least ten minutes, and Duo had to give him light pats on the back, looking worried. 

"Wu? What happened? You ok?"

"I'm ok," he managed to answer. "Just went down the wrong pipe." He glared at Yuy venomously. The boy was eating his sandwich as if he didn't have a care in the world… and as if his toes weren't wriggling against Wufei's belly!

Giving him a suspicious look, Duo sat down on his chair and began to eat once again. His brain was working fast to understand what was happening in front of him, but he was having difficulty. What he had managed to find out was that Wufei looked reluctant to look at or touch Heero… as if… ashamed? And that Heero looked indifferent… But he had wanted to speak to Wufei alone! What had happened? And why had Wufei begun to glare at Heero once again if he had been ashamed before? Heero hadn't done or said anything at all to make him change his mind…

…that Duo had seen. 

He caught a glimpse of Wufei's hand sliding under the table. The boy was trying to keep his face neutral, but he was becoming redder by the minute and that cute little vein on his temple was beginning to pulse wildly. And Heero was too carefully _not_ looking at him.

And Wufei's hand was in his lap, his shoulder muscles moving as if he was trying to push back something…

Duo gaped at Heero, astonished. He COULDN'T be doing what Duo thought he was doing! It was just his dirty mind! 

He was ready to plunge under the table to verify that he was wrong, ready to look like a fool in front of his innocent lovers just to make sure that his world wasn't dancing the samba on its axis, but Heero caught his eyes and winked discretely at him, his face still as neutral as ever. Wufei was now death-glaring at his own lap. 

Duo excused himself as innocently as he could and ran to the little pilot's room to laugh his ass off out of earshot. 

"Get your foot off my lap, Yuy," Wufei hissed as soon as Duo was out of earshot. 

The Japanese boy abandoned his sandwich and turned to face him, his eyes intense.

"Why?" Heero asked, pressing his foot against Wufei's crotch a little bit more. 

"Yuy…!!" the Chinese boy growled, ready to fling the offending foot off his lap.

"You're going to hurt my ribs if you make me move too fast," Heero informed him calmly. 

"Why…?"

Heero smirked and didn't answer. His toes began to clench and uncurl, tickling Wufei's belly, gripping the cloth and dragging it lower, less than an inch at a time, maddeningly, tantalizingly slow. His big toe brushed against the first black hairs of the dark line travelling up toward Wufei's bellybutton. 

"Heero… Why are you…"

"Teasing you?"

Wufei barely managed to nod. Heero's foot was now changing angle, and his heel was now pressing in his sensitive inner thigh, the balls of his foot and his toes going up and down on Wufei's involuntarily hardening member. 

"It may just be because I feel like it, you know," Heero mused, his foot leaving Wufei's crotch to trail a toe along the inside of his thigh. 

"Stop it, damn it!!" Wufei barked, slapping the travelling foot away. Heero managed to keep his balance, and smirked at Wufei who was half standing up, one fist on the table, and glaring at him for all he was worth. 

"You're insufferable, Yuy!"

"Really?" drawled the boy, one of his fingers tracing his own jaw before stopping against his lower lip, directing attention on it. He licked at his lips, slowly, amused when Wufei snorted with anger and turned his back on him.

"Pissed?"

"If you weren't injured I would punch you, Yuy," Wufei hissed, glaring over his shoulder.

Heero smirked some more, and calmly returned to his sandwich. 

"Not hungry anymore?"

"A certain person managed to spoil my appetite."

"Sure doesn't look like it," Heero commented, glancing at Wufei's crotch, where the pants were still slightly but noticeably tented. 

"You… You…"

"Me… Me…? You want me so much that you're stuttering? Oh, 'Fei…" he added in a long, dreamy sigh, ironically parodying a romantic maiden.

"Yuy, you're gonna get it this time!!!" the Chinese boy shouted.

"Oh, yeah, give it to me," he leered back. 

Wufei screamed a torrent of insults in Chinese and stalked out of the room, slamming the door behind him, visibly in serious need to leave before he gave a beating to an injured man. 

Two seconds later Duo came back, blinking. "Where has Wufei gone?" he asked bewildered. 

"No idea," Heero answered innocently, calmly finishing his sandwich. 

Duo snorted, not buying it, and sat down at Heero's side. 

"Yeah, and no idea either why he tried to break down the door I guess… Ok, now, tell me about what's going on, Heero," he asked, his grin vanishing. 

The Japanese boy took the time to finish his sandwich before he answered, giving himself time to think about how he was going to explain so he wouldn't give too much detail, but still be explicit enough that Duo would get what was going on. 

"Before we left, Wufei was tense and he got snappish at me, you know how he is. It's no big deal, but still, we were a little pissed at each other during the mission. And then I had to redirect the attention of the guards on me to prevent him from getting caught."

"That how you got hurt?" Duo asked, neutrally. For Heero to admit he had been a little pissed, he had to have been in a rage, and when Heero was in a rage, it was either the volcano or the ice prince. Wufei was still alive and in one piece and the town two miles away from the factory wasn't blown up to hell and back so it had been the ice prince. Which meant he had been less pissed than just plain hurt. But he would never complain about it, and didn't seem like he still felt hurt, so Duo refused to take a side in this. 

"Yeah. But it was my own damn fault for not being more cautious. I showed him that I wasn't angry at him anymore, and the injury wasn't his responsibility to begin with, but he's still not back from his guilt trip yet," added Heero with a snort. 

Duo snickered. "Back from his guilt trip indeed. Where did you learn to talk like that, with those sorts of expressions?"

"In Duoland. It's a strange land from which you never quite come back," Heero smirked.

Duo blinked. "Idiot!!" he laughed, giving his lover a mock-punch in the shoulder. "Gods, what's gotten into you?… no wait, don't answer that, I don't wanna know, " he added hurriedly. "So tell me, was it just my perverted mind or were you really playing footsie with him?"

Heero glanced dispassionately at Duo, totally neutral. Duo's jaw hit the table. If he hadn't been pretty sure that it was impossible, he would have sworn that there was a disembodied foot now resting in his lap, because Heero's expression made it just unbelievable that he was anywhere near concerned by the appearance of said foot in said place. 

"And you call me a tease. Wow. So, what's your reason for antagonizing Wufei to death?"

Heero shrugged. 

"I'm trying to be annoying enough that he forgets to feel guilty to jump for my throat," he said matter-of-fact.

"Or for your ass," added Duo with a snicker, shooting back his answer by pure force of habit.

"I wish," Heero answered without thinking. 

And then, hearing what he had said, he totally froze.

"Umm…"

"Can I watch if he does?" the braided boy asked, batting his lashes innocently at his boyfriend to get past the awkward moment. 

"Duo!" Heero protested, before beginning to smirk widely. "Hmm… If you're here when he does, you can even join in. If you arrive later, well, at least wait until I'm sure he's not going to run…"

Duo's grin grew to an impossible size. He was not the only hormones-crazed pervert amongst the three of them finally. "Damn, now I _know_ that I neglected you. You're not that horny, usually."

"You didn't," protested Heero. "Neglect me I mean. I just… I _do_ feel attracted to him, you know. It's not just random sexual need, it's…"

"You're lusting after him?"

Heero blushed and shrugged. 

"Hey, I can understand that, I am too. He sure is hot…"

Heero shrugged again and had a small, lopsided grin. "Doesn't help that I have something of a hair fetish…" he muttered, biting his lower lip. 

"I have an Asian men fetish, so it's ok," Duo snickered. "No, seriously, Heero, it's totally ok if you feel desire for him. I certainly won't get jealous. Now if you said that you were actively lusting after… let's say, Quatre or Trowa, _there_, we would have a problem," he added, grinning.

Heero gave him a withering glare. "You're not in any danger from that side," he said grimacing. 

Laughing, Duo kissed him on the cheek then got up, stretching. "So I need to find occasions for you to be alone with Fei, then? Hmm..."

Heero smirked. He should have known that Duo would help with that one mission. It involved perverting Wufei after all. 

"Hentai..." he muttered, shaking his head.

"And proud to be!" answered the longhaired boy, winking at him. "HEY FEI!!!! GOING TO SHOWER, NEED YOU TO TAKE CARE OF HEERO!!!"

And before the answer could come, he had dashed off to the bathroom. 

Wufei burst into the living room three seconds later, but by then it was too late. 

"He's in the bathroom," Heero informed him, aloof. 

The Chinese boy glowered at him for a brief moment before turning half-away, as if he couldn't decide whether or not to stay.

"I want to go to bed."

"And?"

"Duo will skin me if I walk alone," Heero answered without any emotion apparent in his voice. 

Wufei had a long annoyed sigh. "Promise you won't feel me up and we'll see what I can do, Yuy."

Heero snorted. "Afraid?"

The Chinese boy glared at him. "Like hell! I'm willing to help, but if you begin pawing at me, I'll let you fall in the middle of the damn room."

Heero smirked, hiding it behind his hand.

He acted totally innocent for half of the short walk, and then Wufei felt his hand slide lower on his back and stopped, glaring. 

"Yuy... You are sure you really want my help?" he hissed, annoyed. 

"Whose fault is it that I need it?" asked the Japanese teen in a distracted voice.

Wufei froze. Lowering his head, he began to help Heero to the bed once again, not even protesting when the short-haired boy's arm slid to the small of his back and his hand caught Wufei's hip. 

He lowered him to the bed-nest slowly, not looking at him. Heero laid down with a sigh... then caught Wufei's collar and tugged as hard as he could, pushing his hip with his other hand to make him lose his balance. Wufei fell nose first, and had to put a hand just above Heero's head not to fall on him, crushing him... a hand that Heero quickly jostled away, making the Chinese boy roll over him and onto the mattress. When the world stopped moving, Wufei was sprawled on his back on the bed-nest and Heero was laying on his chest, one leg between his and his arms solidly planted on his shoulders and around his head. 

"What the hell...!"

The Chinese boy was going to push him back, but he caught the barely perceptible wince of pain Heero was trying to hide. The Japanese boy had strained his side with that stupid move. Wufei's resolve to get away faltered.

"It was not you fault that I needed help, but now that I have it, I intend to make full use of it..." Heero smirked. 

"Yuy!"

"You've started calling me Yuy again," Heero remarked, suddenly totally serious, and a little sad. 

Wufei froze. 

"I...I... I'm sorry! Oh gods I'm sorry, I didn't even realize, I..."

"Hey, calm down, it was just something I noticed..." Heero whispered, caressing his shoulder gently. "Wufei... Stop feeling so guilty, ok?"

"I can't," the Chinese boy admitted, turning his face away. 

Heero had a long suffering sigh.

"Well, then, if you think you did me wrong... Then you owe me." 

Unsure of where he was going with that reasoning, Wufei nodded carefully. 

"Then you just have to pay me back for a while, and then, your debt will be paid and you won't have to feel guilty again."

"I guess so..." the black-haired teenager whispered. 

"I'm not going to run around for a while. You'll just have to run around for me. Is that ok?"

Wufei thought about it, then nodded slowly. It didn't seem enough, but... Heero would not ask for more. He would just have to be really, really nice to him for a while, and hopefully after a while Wufei would feel that he had compensated for his meanness earlier. 

"And I get to use you as a pillow when I want."

"What?!"

"You're comfy, 'Fei," Duo smirked, suddenly leaning over the couch's back to bend over them, making them jump. "And you rock at playing furniture. Just admit it."

He was wet, his unbound hair dripping, and if they could judge by the upper half of his body that dangled over the back of the couch, naked. The Asian twosome blinked. 

"I thought you were showering, Duo," Heero asked after a few seconds of ogling. 

"Forgot to take the new shampoo bottle, the other was empty... which is funny, because I could have sworn that there was still some in it yesterday," he added playfully, mock-glaring at his lovers.

Wufei groaned. 

"I used it. Sorry," he grouched, unwilling to admit that he liked to use Duo's things, to help him to remember that now he could do it without giving himself away. 

"Oh, it's ok, Wu, just messing with you. But I must warn you that 'Ro there finds the stuff highly addictive," he added, wearing a cross between a grin and a smirk. 

Heero smirked, and just on cue, bent to sniff at Wufei's hair, brushing his cheek against the other boy's.

"Scent's still there..." he purred after a while. 

... _'purred?!' _thought Wufei, worriedly opening his eyes wide. Damn it, he couldn't get used to that new, purring, flirting Heero. It was just plain disturbing! It messed with his sense of reality. Cold cyborg-like guys shouldn't be allowed to act sexy. 

Laughing, probably at his flabbergasted face, Duo danced away and grabbed the new bottle of shampoo before returning to the bathroom, dripping water everywhere. Heero followed him with his eyes until they heard the door of the bathroom slam shut, and Wufei grumbled. 

"Nani?"

"Why did you have an eyeful and I didn't?" protested the Chinese boy in an attempt to put some humor in the situation. 

"Let me think... It may be because I'm sprawled all over you," the messy-haired boy smirked, staring at him right in the eye. 

Wufei snarled at him. "Move," he growled at the boy.

"No," Heero answered calmly, nuzzling his ear. He buried his face in the crook of Wufei's shoulder and sighed, inhaling the smell, searching for the faint traces of shampoo. 

"Yuy..."

"Tut-tut. Heero."

"Ok. Heero. Move."

"No."

"Hee-RO..."

"Good night, Wufei."

"Hee... MMPHHH!! hnnn..."

Heero licked his lips, smirked at Wufei who was still trying to uncross his eyes, and put his face back where it had been, his nose brushing against the black-haired boy's ear.

+

Duo finally got out of the shower, half an hour later, humming a song that was running around in his head and rubbing at his hair with a towel along with the song's rhythm. He quieted when he approached the bed. There was no movement and no sign that they were awake, he didn't want to bother his lovers. 

Noon already, and he was beginning to feel really, really sleepy. And he hadn't done anything, really, apart from waiting for them all night long. After a mission, they must have been exhausted. 

In silence, he lowered the blinds and went to close the door to the kitchen, which let past enough light to bother the two other pilots. Abandoning the towel on a radiator, he walked to the couch, the only sound in the room being the legs of his pajama pants brushing against his skin. 

Heero was sprawled on Wufei's torso, sleeping peacefully. Duo could see his bangs fluttering slightly with each soft exhale of breath. He didn't seem to be in pain, and Duo admitted that maybe, he had been a tad too hyper-protective. But Heero had already, so many times, aggravated one of his injuries by refusing to admit that it was serious, that Duo had been forced to take the opposite stand and treat every bruise like a life-threatening wound. Because there might be a time where he was right, and he wouldn't be able to know it before it was too late, because Wing's pilot was just too plain stubborn to complain. 

Smiling softly at his Japanese lover, Duo sat down on the bed and crawled close to him, his smile widening when Heero, still asleep, instinctively reached out with an open hand for him. 

He bend over Heero to take a look at Wufei's face.

"Help me to move him away, please," mouthed the Chinese boy, adding a pitiful look for the effect.

Laughing as silently as he could, Duo shook his head no. Then, he deliberately looked away to be able to say that he hadn't seen Wufei's frantic request for help, nestling against the two boys.

"Night, Heero-love, night Fei-love," he whispered, and closed his eyes. 

He heard a long-suffering sigh from Wufei, then nothing at all. But he never really knew if it was because Wufei had stopped trying to escape or if it was because he had fallen asleep. 

But then, he didn't really care. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Over the two weeks and a half it took for Heero's ribs –definitely cracked – to heal entirely, Duo and Wufei gradually went into a full-blown contest. Wufei's pride had demanded that he take care of Heero to stop nagging him. Duo had wanted to coddle his usually too hard-working lover. And so...

...

... the contest began.

They would be seated on the couch, watching the TV. Heero would shift to get a more comfortable position. Wufei would, totally randomly, bring him a cushion to get installed more comfortably.

Duo would then bring him a cover for his bare legs, and tuck it with care. Wufei would snort and act as if he didn't even see it.

Approximately ten to twenty minutes later, Wufei would get up to search for a pullover for Heero, who seemed to be so cold with his bare shoulders. 

Or... 

"I got you dessert," would say Duo. 

"You forgot to bring him a spoon, Duo," Wufei would say. And Wufei would bring the spoon. 

Duo's fingers would itch with the barely restrained urge to feed Heero himself, just to outdo Wufei. 

Good thing he never tried. Heero would have bitten them off. 

Or... 

"I made you lunch, Heero."

"I made something he can actually EAT, Duo-love," Wufei would answer, perfectly polite. 

The platter of food prepared by Duo would then mysteriously end all over Wufei. While Wufei would be ranting, something would mysteriously happen to HIS platter, rendering it inedible. Meanwhile, Heero would be calling the closest pizzeria with a long-suffering sigh. 

Things would end in the bathroom, where they would all be trying to clean each other and themselves off without getting in each other's way, laughing the incident off, and innocently pawing at each other –but without actually doing anything, since attempting anything even slightly acrobatic on wet tiles was the only thing which his caretakers agreed not to let him try, not even to win points.

Which would leave Heero hungry, cold, and with a hard-on. He was glad they didn't decide to put him to bed and play alone, though. Injured or not, for that one he'd have torn out their flesh with his teeth and eaten it.

Luckily that had only happened once.

Heero himself was busy hesitating between being annoyed at them because they barely let him breathe, or being amused because they were actually more concentrated on trying to outdo each other than on being nice to him. 

On the plus side, he had been getting fantastic back rubs and massages from Wufei and lots of nookie from Duo. 

He was still pretty relieved when they decided to let him off the hook. He had been beginning to think that being left without any care was preferable to being taken care of too much. Next time he would go to a hospital, even with all the bad memories. Even being tied down to a table by Sally and playing human guinea pig was preferable than having Wufei AND Duo for nurses. 

And so, slowly, things got back to normal.

Well, what passed for normal amongst the three of them, anyway.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"YESSS!!!" 

Wufei started, and nearly tore out his fingers with the tool he was using on his bike. 

He was in the garage, taking care of the engine, something he had neglected for quite a long time now in favor of devoting himself to Heero's care. Now that Duo had decided that Heero could once again move around like he wanted, provided he didn't do anything dangerous like climb his Gundam without a security harness in case he slid off and fell – using a harness was something that to his knowledge none of the pilots had ever done – Wufei had a little more time to himself. 

The Chinese boy stretched his arms and back, glancing at his watch in passing, and gasped. It was evening now, and he hadn't even realized! 

Dropping the tool into its box, he decided to continue another day. He had been away from his lovers long enough. 

And he had to admit, he was intrigued as to where the shout had come from –well, not _who _it had come from, since it had clearly been Duo's voice. Furthermore, if he heard Heero scream "YES!", he would not really need to be told why. He didn't know many things that could make Heero scream, and most of them were very ... private – Anyway!! He was wondering why Duo had shouted, yes, that was what he wondered, not what it would take to make Heero shout like that. Not at all. 

He was only wondering what Duo had done. Yes, that was it. 

He didn't have to walk far, because the moment he opened the back door to walk in the kitchen, Duo nearly ran him over, having apparently been rushing outside at the same time as he had been coming in. They bumped into each other, and Wufei had to grab the door to keep from sprawling on the ground. He managed to stabilize Duo too, but it was a close call. 

"Hey, Wu! Just the one I was searching for!" Duo exclaimed a second before he could ask where the braided boy had been going in such a hurry.

"What do you want now, Maxwell?" Wufei asked, lifting his chin in a superior way, his eyes glinting amusedly.

"Oi! So now I'm back to being Maxwell? You're a bastard, you know that?"

Wufei smirked in his trademark way. Just like the Chinese teen had intended, Duo's eyes softened from their mock-angry glaring to a contemplative look. 

"But a sexy bastard... Hmm. I guess I can forgive that," he added, leaning forward to press against Wufei and stealing a quick kiss.

Chuckling, Wufei pushed him back in the kitchen and closed the door behind him. 

"What did you want?"

"Oh, Fei-love..." Duo whispered, his voice turning low and seductive without warning.

"Should I begin running now?" Wufei asked, his tone ironic enough to cut through stone. 

Duo punched him in the shoulder. "Bastard. I think it's gonna be my new nickname for you. Anyway. There's a movie on TV tonight. We're watching it," he added, his tone playfully commanding.

"If I don't want to?"

"You'll want to. It's historical!"

Wufei lifted a surprised eyebrow. Since when did Duo like historical movies? He found them annoying as hell.

"It's about a wrongfully enslaved General, betrayed by the Emperor's son, whose family gets killed, who's forced to kill against his will, and his fight for freedom and revenge in Ancient Rome."

The Chinese boy blinked. "You're going to tell me that you want to watch a movie that talks about something like that?"

Duo had an impish grin.

"Of course, it helps that they're fighting half naked and all oiled up for more than half of the movie and that the Emperor has the hots for the hero."

Wufei facevaulted. 

"I should have known," he muttered.

"I'm taking care of the snacks, you go get Heero!" and with that, Duo shooed him out of the kitchen and into the living room where the messy-haired boy was typing away, so engrossed in his computer that he didn't even look up.

Wufei gazed after the boy for a while, letting his thoughts drift. They had been so silly with that competition over Heero's care, but it had made him feel better to authorize Duo to sidetrack him, less tense. It had been good not to take it too seriously. Plus it had been revenge for Heero's teasing the other day. 

Heero was now totally healthy again, exactly like he was before... and Wufei's way of seeing him had been totally changed. Taking care of him had broken down the last barriers the Chinese teen had used to protect himself from getting attached, had destroyed for certain the image of the Invincible Soldier that Wufei had believed for so long was all there was to Yuy. Now he knew that Heero had a wicked sense of humor, was capable of teasing someone to death without batting an eyelash, cuddled in his sleep, had a love/hate relationship with long hair, especially when he inhaled it while sleeping, and blushed a lovely soft pink if you covered him with a blanked when he was cold. 

Sure, he was also coldly aggressive when you pissed him off, lashed out with deadly accuracy when provoked, and was totally obsessed with his hacking contests with other computer-addict geeks all over the world to the point he could go days without eating, and he would probably never be able to make a meal that took in consideration the taste more than the nutritional balance or to leave something lying on the ground without his fingers itching to straighten up what he perceived at mess, but... 

But he was a person now. Not an archetype. Not an ideal.

And currently, he was engrossed in one of his online things. Wufei stepped behind him to glance at the screen; he was hacking in a random computer, probably just for fun. 

"Tssst," Wufei smirked, slapping the screen down, nearly catching the boy's fingers with it. 

Heero tensed and Wufei couldn't help grinning when he heard him growl. The Japanese pilot turned to face him, glaring for all he was worth. 

"Tell me that it's bad for my health and die," Heero announced in a voice whose calm was only an appearance.

"The master of our lives decided that we were watching TV tonight," Wufei informed him with a smirk, biting his cheeks not to burst out laughing. Heero had heard the 'It's bad for your health' spiel so many times in the two previous weeks that he was now allergic to anything that sounded even slightly like it. "And I know that you weren't doing anything mission-related. Finish it fast or Duo will drag you away himself..."

Heero sighed. The Chinese boy patted his shoulder, a gesture that was laced with less sympathy than it was with amusement.

+

"Poor Max, snack for lions..." Duo mumbled, blindly reaching in the chips bowl to munch on something some more. The lions had made him remember about his own stomach. 

His hand continued to search for a few minutes, his eyes glued to the screen, but finally the stressful moment ended and he was able to glance at his target. No wonder he hadn't found anything, the bowl was empty. 

Sliding over the couch's armrest, he padded toward the kitchen in silence on his bare feet, trying not to disturb his lovers. It was at least the seventh trip to the kitchen he had made, and so he had finally lost his place between the both of them for a place on the kitchen's side, when they had become annoyed enough with his moving around. Wufei was now in the middle, arms crossed over his chest, but Duo was proud to see that his back had finally begun to follow the curve of the cushions and that he didn't sit so ramrod straight anymore. Heero was leaning against the armrest on Wufei's other side, one knee propped up. He glanced at Duo when he saw him leave, and Duo came back toward him in silence, trying not to disturb the Chinese pilot. 

"Want something?" Duo whispered. 

"Water please," Heero answered in kind. 

"Ok. Make sure he doesn't take my place," Duo added jokingly, pointing at Wufei, before leaving for the kitchen. 

He began to rummage in the cupboards, still trying to stay silent. Apparently he had been more right than he had thought when he had believed that Wufei would like the story. He was totally engrossed in it. So engrossed that when Duo had burst out laughing after hearing the immortal line "You sold me queer giraffes!" he had made the poor chestnut-haired boy eat a cushion –without even looking away from the screen. Apparently, Wufei hadn't found the sentence that funny. Or maybe it was the fact that Duo's guffaws prevented him from hearing the rest of the scene...

+

Back in the living room, Heero was shifting positions. He had been sitting on his leg too long and now, he barely felt it anymore. He unfolded it and folded the other in its place, mirroring the position he had been in before.

Just a problem with the position, he thought with annoyance. When he had been leaning on his other side, he had had the couch's armrest to rest against, but the cushions were too soft and would not bear his weight well on this side... He would probably fall in the dip Wufei's weight made, or would have to bend uncomfortably to avoid it... And he was missing details of the movie with his tries to find a comfortable position. 

He glanced at Wufei, and thought, what the hell. 

+

Totally engrossed in the movie, Wufei didn't even notice at first when he felt Heero lean against his shoulder. He even moved around a little to accommodate him, and leaned back on him when Heero's arm went to rest around his shoulders.

It wasn't before Duo came back with his snacks and a bottle of water and stopped a few feet away, as if surprised, that he figured that something was... not wrong, but not usual either.

Chuckling softly, Duo deposited his game on the table and slid over the couch's armrest.

"After all, it always comes in threes," he mused.

"What are you talking about?" Heero asked.

"This thing that says that if I leave you alone in the living room, I must come back to find you getting snuggly with each other."

Wufei blushed, realizing with a new accuracy the presence of Heero's arm around his shoulders and of their sides pressing in each other's. 

"At least, this time, you're not sucking each other's tonsils out..." he added, smirking at them.

Wufei made a noise that could be considered anything in the scale between a grunt and a chuckle, and turned back to the TV, hoping that no one saw his cheeks turn pink. 

Heero smirked and turned around on the couch to face the other Asian teen. 

"Well, shall we?"

Puzzled, Wufei turned to face him, his confusion fast giving way to surprise and a little something else that made his heart accelerate without really understanding why. 

"Traditions are important after all," the short-haired boy added with a smirk.

Wufei would have answered something, except that his brain seemed to have decided to take a vacation just then. When Heero leaned closed, he didn't react at all, apart from his eyes opening wider and wider for each centimeter closed.

Heero stopped his advance when he could feel Wufei's breath on his face, and stared at his eyes, asking in silence. But the Chinese teen was still too surprised to react, either by closing the distance or turning away. 

Chuckling, Duo slid his hand in Wufei's hair and pushed his head forward. The Chinese boy didn't have the time to protest; Heero's lips were over his. 

This time it was slower, and not as competitive. Just lips, really, nothing too deep. But it was good, too, and the black-haired boy relaxed and kissed back, sighing with pleasure in Heero's mouth when Duo's hand in his hair slid downward and caressed his nape. 

Disengaging, Heero smirked at Duo over Wufei's shoulder, and the braided boy winked at him. Then, together, the two blue-eyed pilots turned to face the screen, ignoring Wufei completely.

"Hey!"

"I thought you wanted to see the movie, oh bastard-mine?" Duo asked innocently. 

Grunting something indiscernible but probably insulting, Wufei grabbed his lovers by the neck and dragged them against him. Duo chuckled again, and slid his arm around Wufei's waist. 

"You admit it, you're great at being furniture," he whispered in his lover's ear. 

Heero playfully swatted at Duo's thigh. "Silence, I'm trying to follow the movie here..."

Relaxing, the three of them got back to being absorbed in the gladiator's adventures, cuddling as if it was the most natural thing the three of them had ever done. 


	7. Chapter Seven AKA FanService Chapter

****

Walking the Tightrope – Chapter 7

Also Known As : The Fan Service Chapter U_U;

Author: Asuka Kureru (asukasama@ifrance.com**)**

Series: Gundam Wing 

Beta-reader: Arabiana-koi

Warnings: Yaoi, romance, sap, love triangle, threesome, lemon; the POV is shifting between the boys. This chapter is total fluff. Angst? Why for?

Couple (trio?) : 1+**2**+**5, 1**x**2**x**5**x**2**x**1 and diverse combinations ^__^ **

Disclaimer: They're sharing, why can't we do the same? ;_;

(BTW for those who don't know, in Japanese, 1x5 is designed as IchiGo. It is because Ichi is one and Go is five, and Heero is one and Wufei is five. Duh. But Ichigo also means strawberry ^___^ Thus, 1x5 scenes are strawberry scenes. Yum.)

Feel free to imagine yourself as a member of the Girls Pack. It's not a fanservice chapter for nothing. ^_______~

And yes, this is the last chapter. There is an epilogue after that, but that's all, the story is ending. *sob* I feel all sad already.

WARNING: I HAVE EDITED THIS CHAPTER FOR THE LEMON (2x5x1) CONTENT. IF YOU WANT IT, GO TO www. sweetlysour. net (remove the spaces). 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Suddenly, after the relative calm, there was a swarm of missions, as if Wufei and Heero's had marked the end of the period of rest. They had to go left and right, sometimes together, sometimes alone, sometimes meeting with the last two pilots. They barely had the time to breathe for the longest time –much less do anything else – when they did end up at the same place by two or three, they slept in the same bed, holding on to each other to make sure to have the memories for a time when they would be alone in their Gundams or somewhere in a school again. 

The two weeks without missions, all three at the same time, a few months after the last time they had been together, came like a god-sent gift. They didn't have to talk about it much to agree to meet in their old house, with the pond and the bed-nest and the yard. No one had ever noticed them living there, and no one was standing guard waiting for them to come back to the area, so it was perfectly safe to return.

The first three days, they did nothing other than sleep, eat, and sleep some more. The two days after that saw the introduction into their routine of watching TV on the couch together, spending hours in the shower, also somewhat together, cuddling and brushing hair for a few hours, by various pairs or trio, then sleeping some more. They needed their rest. 

The sixth day, Duo decided that they were rested enough.

He had missed having fun with his lovers. Now he wanted to go on a date. 

Surprisingly, it had not needed much convincing. Time together was good. Distraction for their poor brains was better. They were getting close to being burnt out. 

So they went on a date.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They were walking down the street when Duo stopped and hurried toward a shop on the side. Surprised, the two Asian teens didn't follow right away. 

Duo was drooling in front of the window. "Guys, you remember that you owe me, right?" he asked over his shoulder. 

"I beg you pardon?" Wufei asked, stunned. 

"The time I found you kissing in the living room. You agreed that you owed me and that when I knew what I want for compensation, you'd give it to me..."

Wufei and Heero glanced at each other and gulped. 

"It was a long time ago," Heero tried to negotiate. 

"You owe me a good-sized amount of interest then."

The two dark-haired boys sighed as one. 

"What do you want, then... oh, no you don't!!" Heero had noted what was in the window. 

"Duo, you know we can't get tattoos," Wufei growled, embarrassed. "We'd get identified too easily."

"Why? I don't plan on asking you to get them in visible places, and since we didn't get them before the war, and we'll only leave this town if we are spotted anyway, that's not as if the tattoo parlor's records will betray our movements or something..."

"Duo, no," Heero answered in his sternest voice. "I do NOT want a tattoo."

They bickered back and forth for a while before Duo relented. Only once he had gotten his consolation prize, though. 

They'd get their hair dyed instead. 

Upon seeing the satisfied smirk on Duo's face, Wufei and Heero understood that they had been had. He had been targeting it right from the start. 

"Duo, please, we'll be even easier to remember..."

"We're in a town that counts seven times more high schools and colleges than the national average. A fourth of them have their hair dyed in some way. At the worst, if 'certain people' learn that we're in that town, it will throw them off trail long enough for you to change colors again."

"Duo...." Heero whined, abandoning all dignity for the sake of preserving the state of his hair. 

"I won't ask for anything flashy like hot pink or fluorescent green, I swear. Now come on."

The two boys crossed their arms on their chests and glared symmetrically. "No way, Duo."

+

"Don't fidget so much, Fei-love," whispered Duo. "The color is taking... aww, don't make a face, it should be visible only under the right light and the man told me that if you really hated it, he could dye it over with black again and it won't look funny at all. I swear... Oh, no, please, not the pout..." added the braided boy, trying to keep his tone saddened and not snickering. 

Heero was too busy glaring at himself in the mirror to take part in the one-sided conversation. 

+

"So, what are we doing now, oh master of my life?" asked Heero once he had successfully dragged his two lovers away from the den of darkness and evil things that was the hairdresser's shop – after all it doubled as a tattoo parlor and the temptation was too great for Duo to resist for long. Heero did NOT want his lover to get a tattoo on a whim and have to listen to him bitch about it later on, or even worse, like it and convince them to get one too. Nonono. Dyed hair was enough damage. Hair grew back, after all. 

Still smirking self-satisfiedly, Duo took the time to ponder the question, suggesting a few things. Heero grunted his approbation or glared his disapprobation, but Wufei was still too busy fidgeting with his hair to participate. The man had forbidden him to tuck it behind his ears or to tie it back for at least one day; it could mess with the way the color was settling and leave him with an uneven coloration, which was even worse than having a color in the first place. 

But now, he had his hair travelling all over his face, which had been his main reason for the habit of tying it back so tight before. It wouldn't stay put any other way. Every time he caught sight of a deep blue lock, he pushed it back with haste, trying to forget, just to un-tuck it a second later for fear of getting a blue patch somewhere. From his point of view, Heero was luckier, he had only gotten red highlights, and since his hair was dark brown it didn't look as unnatural as Wu's space blue hair. 

Plus Heero had been convinced to have the hair on the back of his head trimmed – not his bangs, Duo liked them long and they didn't bother him – and now Duo was petting him every ten seconds to feel the soft and thick strands move against his fingertips, as if he were a cat. Wufei felt jealous. He wasn't even supposed to touch his own hair yet.

"Wu? What do you think about that?" asked Duo suddenly.

"Umm, I wasn't listening," admitted the Chinese boy, looking at his feet.

Heero and Duo were staring at him, and he realized that they knew very well that he hadn't a clue what they were talking about, because they had been observing him for a little while already. He frowned, trying not to pout. It was undignified to pout... oh, hell, who was he fooling, he was pouting. Slightly, yes, but it was still pouting. And blushing, too. 

"You're so cute," snickered Duo. Wufei death-glared at him. 

"Call me cute again and die."

Duo looked bored. "Yanno, after being subjected to Heero's glares for so long, I'm slightly desensitized..."

Wufei slapped him on the butt, hard. 

"YEOWCH!! Bully! Heero, he beat me!!"

"You deserved it!! Heero knows it!"

"Don't look at me, I'm not taking a side," the Japanese teen commented before strolling away, his hands in his pockets. Still glaring at each other, they ran after him and took care to placing him between them. 

Heero glanced right, then left, and sighed. _'Let's dissipate that tension,'_ he decided, dragging the boys to a game center close by. 

Duo's eyes lit up, and Heero smiled at his visible pleasure. They had loved to hit the game centers even before they had gotten together, but it had been at least three months since the last time they had been able to indulge in that pastime. The braided boy disappeared into the crowd as soon as they entered the building, abandoning his lovers. More circumspect, Wufei paused at the door, taking in the scene. 

Heero stayed at his side for a short while; it was obviously the first time Wufei had entered this sort of establishment. The electronic noises and the various exclamations from gamers were making him frown reflexively. Knowing that if he was left pondering, Wufei would decide that he hated the place already and nothing could make him change his mind on that, Heero pushed him forward, following Duo's trail. 

+

"Here, take my place," Duo sighed after ten minutes of trying to beat Heero and getting distracted by his lovers.

Wufei was frowning faintly, staring at the shooting game. He glared at the electronic gun Duo pushed in his hands, then leveled his glare with Duo's eyes, but it seemed mixed with disappointment, and a touch of sadness.

"I don't think...."

Heero put his hand on Wufei's shoulder. "You like the concentration needed for sharp-shooting," he said. 

Wufei nodded. "But..."

"And I know you get adrenaline highs too."

"But..." Wufei tried to protest again. 

"Here, you can exercise your precision and your reflexes, and get adrenaline highs, and never feel bad because you got high on hurting someone. They're pixels, not people. And you only shoot at bad people, and they all deserved it, and they only have to wait for the next player to get back to life anyway."

Heero put the gun back in Wufei's hands. The Chinese boy stared at it for a few seconds, then his grip firmed and he gave Heero a fierce nod. Smirking, the Japanese pilot took the other gun and began a game. 

"...Now, if you're afraid to play because you know you could never beat me..."

"We'll see, Yuy," smirked Wufei, hitting a bull's eye on his first target. 

+

Two hours later, they had beaten half of the games and gotten decent scores at a third of the rest. Most of the regular clients were staring at them with something akin to jealousy-tinged awe, but they didn't care. 

Well, Heero and Wufei didn't care, totally engrossed in their competition. Duo lapped up the attention with great pleasure, chatting amiably with some of the kids and explaining some tricks he used. A small group of girls –a rarity in a game center –was asking him question after question, some on the games, some on how and when he had learned to play that way, some totally on his personal life. He was evading those sorts of questions with a grin, though. 

"Do you think we should go rescue him?" Heero asked.

"He seems to be enjoying himself so far," his comrade answered with a wry grin. "He can handle them."

"Don't know how he does it," Heero muttered. "People. Urgh."

Wufei snorted. 

At the next game, when Wufei's turn came, Heero made sure to slide an arm around Duo's waist as casually as possible, leaning against him. Duo didn't even blink and continued his conversation, but Wufei wanted to laugh so much that he nearly lost a life. Heero was being so possessive... 

The girls faltered in their speech, then one went "Drats!" and then money changed hands. Heero's eyebrows shot up, but he didn't get to demand an explanation. 

Duo was choking on his laughter.

"We bet that longhair was with the other guy," one of the girls kindly explained to Heero, who turned a soft pinkish color.

Duo wondered if he should tell them about the two not being mutually exclusive, but finally decided not to. He was attracting enough attention as it was. Too bad, it would have been fun. 

"Gross, faggots!" one of the teenagers they had beaten exclaimed. "On a date with your girlfriend?" he asked Heero, sneering.

"Liking other men doesn't turn you into a girl," Wufei commented before Duo could punch the guy's face in for calling him a girl, not even turning away from his game to look at the boy. "Seems to me that you're attacking their sexuality because you're not feeling man enough to attack their abilities. Says lots about your own masculinity..."

"What did you say?!"

"Oh, excuse me; it seems that I've used words that are too big for you. I'm translating." 

He stared down his nose at the boy, with his haughty stare that could make anyone feel like an unworthy worm.

"Big mouth, but small dick. That's what I said."

The girls and half of the guys were close to rolling on the floor.

Things would have gotten ugly if the manager hadn't chased them all out. Not feeling like they needed to make a scene, the trio left calmly, walking down the street to find something else to have fun with. 

+

They stopped for a while at a place with a fountain, and sat down on the edge to talk, just exchanging quiet, unimportant comments about the date so far, and about the people milling around them. Duo let his hand trail in the cool water, wondering for one second if it truly would be too much to strip and jump in. He was hot, damnit, and not the good kind of hot. 

He considered Heero, then Wufei. The first was seated on the fountain-edge at his side, the second crouching in front of them in that Asian way he couldn't quite master, being unable to site on his heels without having them leave the ground like Wufei was able to. 

Wufei protested and grabbed Duo's ankle to prevent from falling backward when his braided lover's foot pushed on his shoulder, and the Chinese boy had to put a hand backward not to let his ass kiss the ground.

"What did you do that for?"

"I'm hot."

"... I beg you pardon?"

"I am hot," Duo repeated, slower, tugging on his T-shirt. "Hot as in temperature, although I also am in other ways. Hot as in heat. There is an ice-cream stand over there. Do the math."

"And why should I be the one to go, when you're the one who wants ice-cream?" Wufei scoffed, amused against his will by his boasting.

"You were so chivalrous, protecting us in the game center. I'm sure you don't mind continuing to be."

Wufei scowled, opened his mouth to answer, then realized that Duo-logic was indeed very hard to parry. He was managing to find something, though, when Duo continued.

"Plus I paid for your hair and Heero paid for the games, so it's your turn."

Wufei could have said that he hadn't asked for the hair, but he glanced up at them, sitting, relaxed, before the fountain, and there were tiny droplets beginning to gather like dew on their hair and skin, and the light hit them just so...

... Wufei got up and went to buy ice-cream. 

+

Duo and Heero got back to exchanging soft words here and there, and playing at sending water droplet on each other, flirting without even touching or looking directly at each other. Heero was feeling more relaxed than he had in weeks.

Suddenly, there was a strawberry-ice-cream cone under his nose. Heero blinked.

"I didn't ask..."

"I don't either. Shut up and take it."

Heero snorted, but took the cone. 

Duo was devouring his own, not without picking on Wufei because the man had bought one for himself as well. Heero shrugged and began to eat the treat, and soon, all that could be heard between the three of them was slurping sounds and little moans of appreciation. 

+

Heero's tongue was lapping at his ice-cream, and suddenly Wufei was assailed by a very vivid mental image. One that he didn't want to think about too hard, not in public anyway or he would die of shame. 

Duo lapping at his own ice-cream was sensual, but then, everything Duo did could become sensual. And he had expected Duo eating ice-cream like he would give a blowjob. He went at it with his eyelids shadowing his irises, concentrated, but with a little smile of pleasure on his face. But Wufei had not expected that his own brain would betray him by sending him images of Heero going down on him the way he was eating his own ice-cream. And that was precisely why the sudden mental picture hit him so hard. 

Heero... On his knees before him... and... Wufei's hands lost in his messy hair... and his lips wrapped around him, and his so intense blue stare fixed on him... Oh gods. 

Two seconds later, Heero's wrist was caught in Wufei's hand and there were lips devouring his own where his snack had been. Surprised, he tensed and tried to step back instinctively, but then, he realized that _Wufei _was the one kissing him –and gods but he did kiss well. 

The two revelations went hand in hand; he didn't get any time to dwell on the first. The second was much more interesting to take advantage of. Grunting in acknowledgement and appreciation, Heero began to kiss back, and soon they were locked into an embrace, ice-creams cones half forgotten in favor of the mingling tastes of strawberries and chocolate. 

Forgotten, Duo stared openmouthed at his boyfriends. His own ice-cream was slowly trickling over the back of his hand, but he didn't care. There, in front of him, in a public place, with no prompting at all, Heero and Wufei were lip-locking like crazy, a deep, ravenous kiss that looked like they were trying to taste each other's very soul. 

They separated finally, slowly, Wufei abandoning Heero's throat to lick at his lips, chasing after the strawberries taste that was smeared all around the teen's mouth, Heero's arms rubbing up and down Wufei's back in a reflexive gesture. 

Then their eyes met, and they both stopped to _look _at each other.

Heero stared at the black-haired pilot, as if waiting for an explanation to the sudden assault. Wufei's mouth opened and closed a few times, then, finally he shook his head, and smirked crookedly at Heero.

"I blame it all on the strawberry ice-cream," he managed to chuckle.

Heero nodded as if what he had said was a totally obvious fact that had somehow managed to escape his awareness by a strange accident.

"Yes, strawberry ice-cream is a traitorous thing," he deadpanned. 

Wufei punched him on the shoulder.

When they turned to him, together, as if they had remembered their audience at the same second, Duo was fanning himself with his hand, his jaw still hanging. 

"Shit, did they put something in your ice-cream or what?"

"Umm... sorry, Duo," Heero managed to mumble, embarrassed.

"Sorry? SORRY? I dun want no friggin 'sorry', I want you to do it again, damnit."

The two Asian pilots facevaulted. 

+

Duo watched them kiss for a moment, first with nervousness and self-consciousness, then with less tenseness, then nearly as hotly as they had been kissing earlier. He had always known that he was something of a voyeur, but seeing the two men he loved so involved in each other...

The braided pilot decided to take a hike for a short while; they were in public, kissing like that was the limit. If he popped a boner in the middle of the place, that would not do.

He met some of the girls from the games center walking around the place and they chatted for a while... until one of them spotted the two Asian guys kissing by the fountain. 

"Check that!"

"Whoa."

They began to catcall and whistle, laughing... then one of them froze. 

"Oh, shit," she exclaimed, glancing at Duo worriedly. "That's..."

"Hmm?"

"Looks like... That cute guy you were with..."

"It is," Duo agreed with a grin.

"But, I thought... that is..."

"Yeah?" Duo asked, lazily licking his ice-cream cone without taking his eyes off the two kissing men. 

"The short-haired one... He isn't with _you_?"

"Oh, yes, he's my man," the braided boy answered cheerfully. The girls stared, dumbfounded. 

"But the blue-haired guy's like... _kissing _him... And you're not even jealous?"

Duo shrugged, grinning. "That's ok," he assured them.

"WHAT?"

"He's my man too."

The girls facevaulted. Then the brown-haired one who had given away money before turned to her friend and they began to bicker about their bet.

Grinning at them, Duo sauntered closer to his two Asian lovers and slid an arm around each. Turning his head to look at the girls, he winked at them, before kissing Wufei deeply. He released him and kissed Heero, and then, wriggling his fingers at the spectators, dragged his boyfriends away, laughing. Most of the passer-bys were trying to pick up their jaws, but the girls, after a moment of surprise, cheered. 

Chuckling, Wufei slid an arm around Duo's waist and hooked his finger in Heero's back pocket. Heero shook his head with amusement and bewilderment, but finally, he did the same. The love of his Duo for provocation would always flabbergast him. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Thirstyyyy!!!!"

As soon as Wufei opened the door, Duo ran past him and threw himself at the closest water tap. The Chinese teen blinked before opening the door wider for his comrade and entering the house after the braided tornado.

Heero sat down on the couch's armrest and leaned heavily against the back of the couch. Duo had made them run back and forth in every street he could find, and he was glad to be able to rest now. Not that he hadn't had fun, but it was a welcome change to be able to stop for a while. 

He glanced at Wufei. Since the strawberry incident, they had taken turns alternately avoiding and seeking out each other's eyes, as if playing a game of tag. The kissing had been very good... but surprising, and unnerving. But so very good. 

And they had Duo's benediction and encouragement. 

Wufei passed in front of him, and Heero suddenly lunged for him, grabbed his arm and sat back, dragging the startled Chinese man onto his knees, his back to Heero's chest. 

"Heero?!" Wufei protested, caught by surprise. He briefly tried to struggle, but Heero's arms were tight around him. "What are you doing?"

"Relapse. Strawberry withdrawal."

"Oh?" the Chinese teen asked, fighting back a laugh.

"Yes. I need to take some samples to verify that you're clean," he added, his tone as serious as usual, turning Wufei on his knees to make him face him. 

"A sample, huh?" the black-haired boy asked, lifting an eyebrow. 

Heero nodded and leaned closer, his arms tightening around Wufei's hips, his stare turning intense, of that peculiar intensity that always left Wufei short of breath and dizzy. 

"Then by all means, proceed," the black-eyed pilot breathed, smirking slightly, and let his eyelids drop halfway. 

That was all the invitation Heero needed to taste him the way Wufei had tasted him earlier, deeply, hungrily, nearly forcefully. Chang groaned and kissed back, but his position, seated sideways on Heero's knees and twisting to face the boy, didn't facilitate him retaliating. He bucked against Heero's arms and straddled the boy's thighs, smirking against his lips when the angle proved to ease his delving deep into Heero's mouth. Heero chuckled and stopped resisting Wufei's pressure, falling back over the armrest to sprawl on the couch. 

"Hey!" Wufei protested when he found his back arched uncomfortably by the new position. 

"Sorry, sorry..." Heero snickered. Wufei punched his shoulder. 

Heero tried to crawl back on the couch to give Wufei some space, but his knees were dangling over the armrest and he couldn't find enough leverage. He twisted and squirmed under his partner's body, slowly crawling backward, until he was in a better position. 

"You could have helped," he grumbled, glaring at Wufei who had just been lying on him, letting him do all the work. 

The Chinese boy lifted his head to look at him, and gave him a crooked smirk. "I could have," he agreed. 

Heero growled and grasped a fistful of blue hair, dragging Wufei's face down to meet his lips. 

"Careful with the hair," Wufei gasped between two kisses. "The color..."

"You can get it redone," Heero answered, nibbling at his jaw. 

Wufei crawled higher to have a better angle, and Heero lifted a surprised eyebrow at him. There was something poking his thigh, and that was definitely way too warm to be a gun.

Wufei grumbled and briefly looked away, but then he turned his smirk full force on the teenager under him. 

"You seem to be enjoying this."

"This being you pinned under me? I'd be a fool not to enjoy it."

Heero growled and pushed him to the side, making him fall off the couch and onto the bed-nest, rolling and falling after him.

"Oof! Did J feed you gundanium? I swear you're heavier than Rashid..."

"And you know how it feels to be pinned under Rashid how?" Heero leered. 

Wufei stared. "You're disgusting! Now move, you're putting pressure on my balls and that's not the good kind of pressure."

Snorting, Heero rolled on his side. "I'm sorry, did I bruise Little Feifei?" he asked, straight-faced, petting Wufei's crotch. 

The blue-haired teen groaned. "That's lame, Yuy, very lame."

"Oh."

"I didn't say you had to stop touching me, though," the Chinese one mumbled. He glanced at Heero just to see his smirk widen impossibly. 

"Really, now...?" the Japanese teen asked, his voice low, letting his hand slide on Wufei's inner thigh, tantalizingly close but not even grazing.

"Yuy! Touch me or don't, but don't tease! Or I'll just grab Duo and lock myself away with him, and you'll take care of yourself alone!"

"Bah, I'll still be able to listen to the sounds you'll make with him... Make sure there isn't a window, though," he added, kneading his partner's thigh.

"Voyeur," Wufei grumbled, trying to discretely rearranging himself in his pants not to feel that much friction against the leg of his pants. It was way too distracting and Heero wasn't helping any!

The short-haired boy snickered. 

"Can I know why you INSIST on waiting for me to be away to jump each other?"

Heero groaned and let his head fall on Wufei's shoulder.

"We don't do it on purpose, I swear..."

"_I _don't do it on purpose," Wufei answered. "I don't know about him, though."

"Hey!"

"I wasn't the one to drag you on my lap, now was I?"

"You were the one to push me back on the couch and sprawl all over me, though."

Duo groaned, and fell on the couch sideways, face first. "Will you stop giving me depraved mental pictures?" 

Wufei glanced at Heero, then at Duo, discretely. When he looked back at Heero, the guy's eyes were gleaming. Visibly they had had the same idea. 

Wufei sat up, grabbed the braided pilot's arm and dragged him down with him. Heero leaned over Wufei to hook his hand in Duo's belt and helped his fall. When they stopped moving, Wufei was half seated where he had been, and Duo was sprawled across his chest, his upper torso in Heero's lap and his face pressed against his hip. 

"Hey, warn a guy next time," he protested, trying to find a place to put his hand and push himself up. 

"What for? It's funnier this way," Heero answered.

"Funnier for you, maybe, but... Ooooooh. Is that for Wufei or for me?"

Duo had just noticed what the thing his cheek was brushing against was, and was moving his head back, his eyes crossing to try and get a better look at the bulge in Heero's pants.

"Don't know. First come, first served, I guess," Heero shrugged, looking indifferent. Duo laughed breathlessly, his eyes gleaming. Their eyes met and held, and Duo grinned dangerously. 

"I guess I'm closer than Wufei," he mused, nuzzling Heero's fly distractedly. Heero groaned and had to force himself not to push his hips forward; he could feel his lover's warm breath through the cloth. And just when he thought there was going to be a more defined contact...

"Hey, Fei, not too bored there?" Duo asked, turning his head to look at his other lover. 

Leaning back on his elbows, the blue-haired teen was observing them carefully. He smirked at Duo and moved his hips a little, letting the braided boy feel his own erection, trapped under the American's body. "Not really, no," he commented, petting the ass Duo was wriggling just under his nose.

Grumbling, Heero tapped on Duo's shoulder and gave a pointed glare to his own lap. "Wufei will amuse himself with your butt. He doesn't require your active participation. Now..."

The braided boy glared, amused anyway, and nuzzled teasingly at the hard flesh trapped just beneath Heero's pants. 

"Duo..."Heero hissed, his hands clenching on the covers. Chuckling, the braided boy began to nuzzle up and down his length, putting slightly more pressure in this. 

Heero closed his eyelids halfway. Duo was mouthing the cloth now, and he could feel his pants getting warmer and damper where his lover was playing. 

Wufei was watching them, his hand laying on Duo's ass cheek, his fingers ghosting over the crack. When Heero met his eyes, he stopped, and they both blushed faintly. 

"Whassamatter, Fei?" Duo asked, lifting his head from Heero's lap and glancing over his shoulder. Seeing his blush, he rolled on his back across Heero's legs, abandoning the Japanese teen's erection. Wufei's hand trailed down his butt, to rest over his hip when he stopped moving. 

"Nothing, it's just... Are we really going to do it?" he asked, struggling not to look away.

Blinking, the American boy sat up, crossing his legs. "Do wha...oh. Umm. I kinda went with the flow here, guys... Wu, do you think... we shouldn't? You don't want to try?"

Heero scratched his calf with great care. "I kind of assumed we would... I mean... It doesn't bother me at all to have intercourse with the both of you. But if you don't want to, Wufei, it's not a problem..."

"I never said that!! It's just that... Umm. Damn, I feel stupid..." he groaned, falling back on the mattress and throwing an arm across his face. "Please excuse me, I'm being silly. I was ok with making out, but then I kind of realized that the way it was going, it would not stay just making out for long... and..."

"Wufei... If you don't want to go farther than making out with both of us at the same time, it's ok. I guess it can be kind of overwhelming..."

"Don't talk to me like I'm a shy little virgin, will you?" the Chinese teenager asked in a dry tone.

Duo laughed. "Sorry."

"You should know I'm not a virgin. I just..."

Heero frowned faintly. "You ok with having sex? Now? With us both at the same time?"

"Yes, I am perfectly ok with fucking you both silly, and stop patronizing me! I just..."

"You just?"

"Duo and I didn't do as much as Duo and you, and... I just don't have as much experience in male on male sex as you both do, ok?"

"Hey, that's true... I never took you!"

Wufei saw that Heero was staring openmouthed at him, turned crimson and wished the mattress would open under him and swallow him, or something. 

"What, Duo didn't fuck you yet? I'm disappointed in you," he said to Duo. The braided boy looked sheepish for a second, then grinned and winked at him.

"Hey, such a hot piece of ass demands to be savored for the longest time, not to have someone go at it like a rabbit, wham, bam, thank you ma'am. And if you had not broken your ribs, I'd have gotten much more time to enjoy it! But since we had to be at your beck and call..."

"What?! When did I ask for you to be at my beck and call?? How many times did I ask to be left the fuck alone?!"

Wufei saw that it was going to turn badly, but if he put himself in the middle of that, he would have to take sides or be plummeted in the ground by the both of them. 

He unbuttoned his shirt instead, in a fast gesture, and let it fall off his shoulders. The argument stopped cold in mid-sentence. Two suddenly hungry stares turned to him.

"Dibs!!" Duo yelled, throwing himself at him and tackling him to the mattress. Heero crawled on all fours to the side of the pile, where he could touch both of them, and pressed his mouth to the Chinese teen's nude shoulder.

"I didn't think it would work so well," Wufei laughed, trying to fend off their roaming hands. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(SNIP SNIP)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"That's the last time I'm bottoming," Wufei would say the morning after, when they would have to separate their tangled limbs and their body hairs, glued together by dried semen, and that he wouldn't even be able to sit up because his ass felt like Duo had taken him with a baseball bat. 

"Duo's gonna be busy on two ends, then, 'cause I'm not either" Heero would groan, hissing because of the places the fragile skin of his entrance had been split, and Wufei would see the faint traces of dried blood, not much, barely a drop, and would wince and rectify his declaration in his thoughts, thinking that maybe, maybe he'd bottom for Heero, once only, to make amends, even if it had been Heero's own fucking fault.

Duo would grin like the Cheshire cat, and would roll over his two lovers, and would drag then both down for a morning kiss before claiming dibs on the shower, even if he was the less dirty of them. 

For now, it was night, and they were sliding from afterglow into sleep without missing a beat, tangled together, fingers interlaced, arms surrounding shoulders and legs winding around other legs, or torsos, Duo still inside Wufei and Wufei still inside Heero and Heero's hands still lost in their hair. 


	8. Epilogue

****

Walking the Tightrope – Epilogue

Author: Asuka Kureru (asukasama@ifrance.com**)**

Series: Gundam Wing 

You can find other chapters here:   
http://www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=947465 since I update my site once in a blue moon, and illustrations here: **  
**http://asukasama.free.fr/art/walking_the_tightrope_blufe.jpg**   
**http://asukasama.free.fr/art/Balance%2Bfond.jpg (this was actually intended as an illustration for another fanfic, but it turned out to be for that arc instead. Go figure.)   
http://asukasama.free.fr/art/1x5on_a_bed.jpg (they're naked in that one, folks and yes, it's the pic that spawned that idea of Fei with space-blue hair)

****

Beta-reader: My Arabiana-love

Warnings: Yaoi, romance, sap, love triangle, threesome, heavy lime to nearly full lemon, dunno yet; the POV is shifting between the boys. 

Couple (trio?) : 1+**2**+**5 **

Disclaimer: They're sharing, why can't we do the same? ;_;

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Duo leaned on the windowsill and looked around the yard for his lovers. He caught sight of them in front of the garage, tinkering with Wufei's bike. They weren't talking much, a word here and there when they needed a tool, but they were working together. On _Wufei_'s _BIKE_. Even Duo barely had the right to touch it, much less play with its insides. 

The braided boy grinned. It seemed that his two lovers had discovered some common interests between them. He was happy for them. 

He had been so afraid that they were tolerating each other for his sake only... But they really seemed to get along great now. Hell, they acted like they _liked_ each other, sometimes, although he could have waited for days and never heard one of them admit it out loud, even in as indirect a way as possible. 

He meant... they kissed, and touched, and stuff. And he didn't even have to push them to. They weren't doing that just because they knew he found it hot, were they? And they exchanged amused smirks and knowing glances all the time, and they teased him in synch, and... so many things. They had to likeeach other, didn't they?

Well, yeah, they kind of had to... But... They liked each other ok, but he didn't know if they... _liked_... each other... 

Ok, ok, they had sex together, so it had to be slightly sexual between them! Hell, Heero had admitted out loud to lusting after Wufei, and Wufei had kissed Heero without prompting many times now, and sometimes when Duo wasn't even supposed to be in the room; much less looking. So it couldn't be... 

He sighed, and decided to admit his preoccupations out loud, to himself at least.

"They are not playing along for my sake," he whispered with intensity, his eyes fixated on the sight of the both of them behind the glass. 

He didn't want to force them into anything... Well, it was obvious that they were content with the new arrangement, but he wanted more than content for them. He loved them. He wanted them in bliss, forever and ever, because he wasn't able to be truly happy if they weren't as happy as he was. 

He knew they loved him. But what did they felt for each other? It was so complicated. 

He had been listening for a clue, absent-mindedly at first, then with more attention over the weeks, until it had become almost an obsession, a worry that he was trying hard not to let his lovers see. But it was slowly eating away at his ability to enjoy being with them without afterthoughts. They just never, ever, hinted at what was between the two of them out loud. It was so frustrating!!

Ok, Heero had explained to him, when it had still been the two of them, that with the way he had grown up, with his adoptive father, Odin Lowe, Heero didn't know how to express his feelings out loud. He could only hint at it with his acts. He had been taught to act on his feelings, he hadn't been taught to explain them. He had trouble just finding the corresponding words to put to them sometimes. But if Duo looked close enough, he would see. And Duo had seen. 

It had taken months before Duo had heard the words. He had been happy to hear them, that was a given, but he had not been doubting Heero's feelings, because he had known. Because he had seen it. 

Plus, if what he had read on the question was correct, in Japanese society, affection and love were to be shown by subtle acts of thoughtfulness, not talked of. It was probably the same thing for Chinese society. Where his 'Fei had grown up, they had been formal and repressed, he doubted that they went around smooching everyone they happened to cross on their walks. 

Yes. It was like the song. That stupid, sentimental song... but the lyrics fitted. 

They said it better when they said nothing at all.

__

'They're prob'ly having whole, deep, meaningful conversations with two blinks and one shrug, then,' he thought derisively, feeling the good cheer he had been trying to ingurgitate rise like bile in his throat. 

The fact was, either he didn't look where he should be looking, or they didn't show it when he was there, which opened a whole new line of worry, or there simply wasn't anything to see. And that was the worst possibility so far.

He sighed and tried to put things back into perspective. He knew that they had promised to talk if something bothered them, but he couldn't very well ask: "By the way guys, are you in love with each other?" out of the blue, now could he? It was something that he had to sort out himself. Maybe it wasn't that big a problem anyway; maybe he was the only one who was bothered by any of that. 

__

'Even if they don't love each other, it's not important. They like each other as friends, and they tolerate each other, and they understand each other, and it's... It can be good enough. It can be.'

He sighed, then forced a smile on his face, forced the worry away from his eyes. 

__

'Like they said that day; they love me, and they respect each other enough to try. There was never anything more in the initial accord, and now they're kissing and flirting and stuff. I have more than my share of happiness already. It's more than good enough.'

He opened the door, walking toward his lovers.

+

Duo spent some time with them, but for once he didn't have a conversation subject in mind that wouldn't lead to them finding out that he was concerned over such a silly thing. And they were already two people working on that bike; a third one would only make a mess of their carefully choreographed ballet. After a while, he excused himself and decided to go take a look at the little pond, just because he wondered if that toad was still there. He hadn't thanked it for his adventure with Wufei in the shower stall.

... ok, so it was a silly excuse. But he couldn't ponder on his problem in his lovers' presence, and they didn't seem to need him just now. He'd have some bonding time later... For now he just wanted to be alone, to be able to sort himself out. It was just a matter of time, really, before he got over this silly matter... 

He sat down heavily in front of the pond and sighed. The muddy water plane was as uninteresting as possible. That suited him. He crossed his legs, put his chin in his hands and let his mind wander.

+

Wufei wiped his hands on a rag and began searching in the toolbox. "Duo seemed... concerned. Did you see? Or is it just me?" he asked, sounding totally aloof.

"Yes," Heero frowned. "Wonder why?"

"No idea," the black-haired boy shrugged.

"Do you think we should inquire?" 

Wufei shook his head. "He's trying to hide it... We can't ask, he'd deny it and bury it, instead of only trying to sort it out by himself."

"Do you think he... he's having second thoughts?" Heero pondered, looking unconcerned. The stutter betrayed him, though. 

"No way. Do YOU have second thoughts?" Wufei asked, stopping the pretense of working on his bike to look at his other lover. 

"Hell no! ... do you?" 

"Neither," Wufei snorted. "I get to top you, after all," he added jokingly. 

"Cherish that memory," Heero growled," because it was an exceptional circumstance and I am not planning on repeating it anytime soon."

"Yes, of course, Yuy. Whatever you say, Yuy," Wufei leered at him. 

"Next time I'll be the one on top," Heero assured, scowling.

"I hope you don't hold your breath, _dearie_."

" 'Che. Back to Duo, you self-delusional fool."

Wufei sobered up.

"I wonder what it is. He's trying to hide it, but he was never that good at hiding his feelings. He's been preoccupied for days now... He always cheers up when he's with us, but did you see him when he thinks he's alone? He's so deep in thought he doesn't even feel when someone is looking at him... I agree, he's used to our presence, but still."

"Yes, I saw that too," Heero nodded. "Maybe he fears for us... the three of us I mean." 

"Why? It's going well... isn't it?" Wufei asked in a low voice, looking at his feet. His voice was strangely unsure behind the macho posing, and Heero felt a tingle of worry running up his back. Wufei wasn't supposed to be vulnerable. 

"Oh yes it is," Heero leered to steer the conversation back on more manageable ground. Wufei punched him on his arm. 

"Pervert."

"Takes one to know one. And I wasn't the one taking and giving at the same time, you greedy, vicious little bastard," he added with a smirk. 

"No, you were the one taking everything up every hole and demanding more, you cocksucking bitch," Wufei smirked back. Heero growled and wrestled him to the ground. Wufei fought back and soon they were rolling on the ground in a mock fight.

The horseplay didn't last long, and they sat back against the wall, disheveled, grinning like loons. 

"You pawed at the front of my pants," Heero exclaimed, taken aback, when he remembered a peculiar sensation that he had felt during the fight.

"Yes, I did," the black-haired boy answered calmly.

"Pervert."

Wufei smirked at him, a smirk so wide it was probably what killer whales called a grin. "Bitch."

Heero lifted his fist as if he was going to hit Wufei over the head, but on the way down the violence mostly disappeared from his gesture and the Chinese boy only had to suffer through severe disarranging of his hair, which in itself was quite damaging for his pride.

"Yuy, stop petting me, will you?" the Chinese boy demanded, huffing with annoyance. 

"No, I won't."

"Yes you will," Wufei grumbled, dodging Heero's hand. "Or I'll cut my hair."

Heero snorted. "Like hell. As if Duo would let you anyway."

"What is with your and Duo's obsession for my hair?"

"It's pretty," mocked Heero. 

"I'll give you pretty!"

"Oh, is that its name?" Heero asked, looking at Wufei's crotch. "I thought it was called little Feifei... hey!"

Chuckling, the Japanese teen evaded his comrade's fists.

He fell back against the garage's wall, and gazed up toward the sky. The clouds were drifting slowly, lazily. Wufei joined him in his contemplation for a moment.

"You think he's afraid we'll fail?" he asked, not looking at his comrade.

"I think he may be," Heero answered, pensive. It made sense, after all.

"But we will not... will we?" 

"We won't," answered Heero.

"You sound so _sure_," Wufei scoffed. 

"That's because I am. I trust Duo to hang on to us. And I think I want to hang on to you... a little while longer at least," he added with one of his little smiles, those who barely seemed to be here. "Do you... want me to?" he asked, his voice dropping low, nearly a whisper. 

There was a long silence.

"...moron..." the raven-haired boy whispered. "Try ditching me and see how far you get away from me, and _then_ ask me."

The level of emotion was becoming too much. The messy-haired boy jumped to his feet, surprising Wufei. 

But once he was on his feet, the Japanese realized how his move could be interpreted. Heero didn't want Wufei to think that he rejected that line of conversation... He gave his hand to help him up. He didn't look at him, though. He was so embarrassed that he could feel the blush raising; he didn't want Wufei to see. 

"Let's get your bike in the garage, we've done enough for today," he decided.

In silence, they pushed the bike back inside, and went to the living room. 

"Hey... Duo's not here?" 

"Nope. Strange," commented Wufei, looking in the empty kitchen. 

"Maybe he decided to go for a walk," Heero pondered. "He couldn't know that we'd finish that early..."

"Probably," Wufei agreed. He went to the couch and sat down, heavily. He was not that tired yet, but he felt like resting a little. Plus he needed to say something to Heero, and he really thought that it would be better if he was comfortable. 

He had been on the verge of letting it slip; if Heero hadn't jumped upward in that way, maybe he would have. But then, Heero was like him, uncomfortable with that touchy-feely stuff.

... well... maybe not the touchy part.

"Want a drink?" Heero asked, showing him a beer bottle. 

"Sure," Wufei agreed. He had a feeling he would need the boost up. 

Heero sat down at his side, handing him his beer, and they sat in silence for a long while, relaxing side by side in a wordless companionship. 

They were drinking their second beer when Wufei leaned forward, nursing his can between his hands. 

"You know, a few months… Hell, a few WEEKS before today, I would have laughed myself sick if someone had told me that you and me could be a couple. I mean, we've been rivals since day one, and as much as I respect you, I just cannot…*could* not stand you without a mission ongoing, not without trying to pick a fight with you. But you and me, together… Not in relation to Duo I mean. Well, I mean, I know I would never have thought about that if he hadn't made us more comfortable around each other, but…"

He fidgeted and glanced on the side before getting the courage to talk again. 

"We would probably have a VERY rocky relationship, and most of our furniture would NEED to be unbreakable, but I… I mean, I still love Duo best, but if he wasn't here with us, I could… I think I could like being with you anyway," Wufei stammered. "Even if you are such a pretentious, pompous, self-important, sarcastic bastard," he added belligerently, daring him to laugh at his words. 

Heero's eyes lightened and he smirked his superior, amused smirk, the one that buried its way under Wufei's skin every time.

"So I am a pretentious, self-important, sarcastic bastard?" he asked, deposing his can of beer on the coffee table.

"You forgot the pompous," Wufei grunted, half relieved that Heero hadn't decided to make a big deal of his confession, and half angry that he hadn't made a big deal of his confession. Shit, here he was, laying his feelings out for him, and the bastard didn't even seem to notice! What a...

Heero's arms encircled him, and he nuzzled the Chinese boy's neck, hugging him tight. 

"You're right, without Duo to calm us down, we probably would kill each other within a week, but at least it would have been an interesting week, ne?"

Wufei chuckled feebly. What Heero had said didn't sound as if he had understood all that Wufei had been saying, all that he had been implying. But it was still an acceptance, still good enough...

"Suki da, Fei-kun…" Heero whispered against his skin, hugging him tight. 

The black-haired boy's eyes widened. He didn't know much Japanese, but he knew that one.

"How did you manage to do that?" Wufei asked softly, amazed. 

"What are you talking about?" Heero wondered, puzzled, lifting his head to look at him. His cheeks were slightly flushed, as if he felt intimidated somehow, but was unwilling not to meet his eyes. It made Wufei's belly clench tighter. 

"What did you do to make me fall for you too?"

Heero blinked once, twice, and buried his face in the other boy's neck again. Not before the other boy saw the little, bewildered, contented smile lifting just so the corner of his lips.

The raven-haired boy hugged back, sighing deeply, and closed his eyes.

+

Behind the door, Duo closed his eyes and gave a watery grin to the ceiling. It seemed like they would continue to dance on the tightrope a little while longer. 

~owari~


End file.
